Investment holding group Bidvest has increased its offer to acquire McCarthy Motor Holdings from 33c to 36c an ordinary share.
Investment holding group Bidvest has increased its offer to acquire McCarthy Motor Holdings from 33c to 36c an ordinary share.
Nedbank Corporate, independent financial advisors to the McCarthy board, last week advised the board that Bidvest’s offer of 33c a share was not fair to shareholders. The increased offer is still less than the 37c recommended by Nedbank Corporate.
Bidvest reported the increased offer price on Friday after receiving an irrevocable written undertaking from McCarthy shareholders, who collectively hold 22,9 million ordinary shares representing 1,13 per cent of the McCarthy ordinary shares, to accept the offer at a price of 36c a share.
Bidvest said on Friday it had to date acquired 24,1 million McCarthy ordinary shares representing 1,19 per cent of the McCarthy ordinary shares, according to a article.
It added that McCarthy ordinary shareholders, collectively holding 1,8 billion McCarthy ordinary shares representing 90,47 per cent of the McCarthy ordinary shares not held by Bidvest, had in writing irrevocably undertaken to accept the Bidvest offer.
Brand Pretorius, McCarthy’s chief executive, said on Friday that McCarthy’s board of directors had not yet received a letter from Bidvest detailing its firm intention to make an offer.
But Pretorius said this was because two conditions of Bidvest’s proposal were still outstanding: the formal approval of the acquisition by the competition authorities and from one of McCarthy’s licensors. Once these approvals were obtained, McCarthy would receive its offer from Bidvest.
“McCarthy dealerships will be very accommodating in the hope they can get incremental business from them [Bidvest]. But there is no firm rule as yet because the deal has not as yet been consummated,” he said.
