Asciano Group Rejects Over 2 billion dollar Offer

Asciano Group has rejected a takeover offer of 2.89 billion Australian dollars from a private-equity consortium in the United States, which the Asciano Group believes undervalues them. The transport and infrastructure company stated that they received a non-binding, unsolicited, indicative offer from Global Infrastructure and TPG Capital Partners of either cash amounting to 4.4 Australian dollars for each share in the company or the option of taking securities in a non-listed bidding company. If the takeover was to succeed, it could have been the biggest private-equity agreement in the history of Australia, surpassing the buyout of 1.66 billion Australian dollars in Coates Hire Ltd., an equipment-fire firm, that was completed in January with National Hire Group Ltd., a smaller consortium rival, and Carlyle Group LP, a private-equity firm.

Asciano shares increased on Monday, August 4th, by 16% to 4.83 dollars per share on anticipations of a successful bid in the company would have been higher. Asciano says that their directors did consider the offer and believe that it undervalued the firm, so they decided not to take the agreement. They also said that the sufficient finishing of due diligence is a precondition to making a final proposal with the consortium. Justin Gallagher, the Head of Sales Trading in Sydney at ABN Amro, said that it doesn’t appear to be a large enough premium, and the market is saying that the bid should have been higher than that. A consortium spokeswoman says that they are considering their response, but she would not comment on it any further.

Learn more at: www.asciano.com.au