| Monday, Belgian food retailer Delhaize Group (DEG) said its subsidiary Delhaize "The Lion" Nederland B.V., or Delned, raised its offer price for the shares of Alfa-Beta Vassilopoulos, which it does not own, by 3.50 euros or 11.5% to 34.00 euros per registered share. Delhaize added that it has reached an agreement of acceptance at the revised tender price with Vassilopoulos family members to tender 887 494 Alfa-Beta shares, or about 7% of the total, and with another important private shareholder to tender 630 thousand Alfa-Beta shares, or approximately 5% of the total.
{loadposition link_supportresistance} {loadposition homeaccordion2} | | | {loadposition contentad} | | | | | According to Brussels, Belgium-based Delhaize, the increased tender offer price represents a premium of 36% over the closing stock market price on May 15, 2009, the day prior to the announcement of the tender offer, and a premium of 38.9% over the volume weighted average closing stock market price of the last three-month period ended on the same day. The company noted that all Alfa-Beta shares validly tendered by the closing date of the offer on July 9 will be entitled to receive the new tender offer price. Delned intends to purchase Alfa-Beta shares on-or off-market at prices up to the increased offer price, and the company does not intend to increase the tender offer price further. As announced earlier, Delhaize said, Delned intends to exercise its statutory right to acquire any remaining Alfa-Beta shares if its interest in Alfa-Beta reaches at least 90% of the voting rights at closing of the tender offer. Upon reaching 95% of the voting rights in Alfa-Beta, Delned plans to initiate the process for delisting Alfa-Beta's shares from the Athens Exchange. It was on May 18, 2009 that Delhaize announced that Delned had filed with the Hellenic Capital Market Commission, or CMC, a voluntary tender offer for Alfa-Beta shares not owned by Delned at a price of 30.50 euros per Alfa-Beta share. Prior to commencement of the tender offer, the company owned about 65.27% of the outstanding shares of Alfa-Beta. The company said that Delned is seeking approval from the CMC for the increase in the tender offer price. On June 22, the Board of Directors of Alfa-Beta expressed its opinion, supported by its independent financial advisors, that the tender offer is fair from a financial point of view to the minority shareholders of Alfa-Beta. Pierre-Olivier Beckers, President and Chief Executive Officer of Delhaize, stated, "I am very pleased that the members of the founding family of Alfa-Beta support our voluntary tender offer. Delhaize Group has enjoyed a successful partnership with the Vassilopoulos family since our first investment in Alfa-Beta in 1992, and we are grateful for all their support over the years." Further, on behalf of the Vassilopoulos family members, Charalambos Vassilopoulos said, "The tender offer confirms the longstanding partnership of the Vassilopoulos family with Delhaize Group. We are convinced that they will continue to support Alfa-Beta going forward, that they will preserve the unique positioning of the company in the market and respect its values and, most importantly, its associates." DEG closed Friday's regular trading session at $69.92, up $0.51, on a volume of 41 thousand shares.
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