Africa-Press – South-Africa. AUSTRALIA-BASED asset management company 360 Capital Group has put in a third offer to acquire Irongate Group, formerly Investec Australia Property Fund (IAP), despite IAP management’s misgivings about their earlier offers.
IAP said in a statement on Wednesday morning that it had received a revised non-binding proposal from 360 Capital Group and 360 Capital REIT to acquire, by way of a trust scheme, all of the securities in IAP which 360 Capital does not already own, for A$1.72 (R19.83) cash per security.
It said the new offer reflected a 7.2 percent increase from the original indicative proposal, first made on October 15. The second offer, made last month, represented an increase of only 3.1 percent on the original offer which IAP’s management had rejected, as they said it materially undervalued IAP.
IAP said also that there were no other changes to the terms of the new offer from 360 Capital, including the conditionality of both the offer and its funding.
This means the new offer did not address the IAP board’s previous concerns about these conditions.
IAP said its board was considering the new offer with the assistance of its advisers.
IAP’s board, in an unusual parry for the corporate world, had warned its shareholders in a letter in July already that 360 Capital might try to take control of IAP, and proposals to elect two 360 Capital Group directors to the board were subsequently not accepted by shareholders at its annual meeting.
At that time, 360 Capital Group held about 19.11 percent of IAP shares.
On the JSE, IAP’s share price increased by 4.17 percent to R18.49 on Wednesday morning, while on the Australian stock exchange it was trading 1.6 percent higher at A$1.60.
IAP’s share price has risen 24 percent so far this year. The new offer represents an estimated 7.2 percent increase over the share price.
In the six months to September 30, IAP reported a net asset value per unit at AU1.51, which had increased from A$1.48 at the same time in 2020.
In the interim period to September 30, IAP increased its income attributable to unitholders considerably to A$108.89 million from A$38.34m.
Recently, IAP announced it had entered into agreements to acquire an industrial business park at 16 Aspiration Circuit, Bibra Lake in Western Australia, for A$26m and a 50 percent interest in an office building at 510 Church Street, Cremorne in Victoria, for $130m.
The Bibra Lake property was funded by debt, while some of the proceeds from a A$50m equity raise, as well as debt would be used to fund the Cremorne acquisition.
The Cremorne property, the acquisition of which was completed on Wednesday, is a new A-grade office building comprising nine levels of office accommodation, ground floor retail and 145 car parks.
The sale of IAP’s 24 Wormald Street, Symonston in Australian Capital Territory, also completed this week. IAP holds 36 industrial, office and retail properties with a portfolio value of A$1.56 billion, some 96.1 percent of which is occupied.
BUSINESS REPORT ONLINE
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