AUSTRALIA’s Qube Holdings on Monday agreed to an A$11.7 billion ($8.26 billion) buyout offer from a consortium led by Macquarie Asset Management (MAM), sending shares in the logistics group to a record high.
The agreement follows months of talks after a Macquarie Asset Management-led consortium made a nonbinding offer in November for Qube, which gave Australia’s largest integrated provider of import and export logistics an enterprise value of A$11.6 billion.
“MAM’s offer underscores the value that has been created through our strategy for growth, the quality of our business, leadership team, and people, and the strength of our safety culture,” Qube Managing Director Paul Digney said.
Shares in Qube, which owns ports, intermodal terminals, and bulk handling facilities across Australia, jumped as much as 4.1 percent in early trading to an all-time high of A$5.05. The stock remained below the consortium’s A$5.20 per share offer.
Under the scheme implementation deed, the Sydney-based firm can pay dividends up to a maximum of 40 Australian cents, which will result in a reduction in the offer price, both Qube and MAM said.
UniSuper, an Australian pension fund, will transfer its 15.07-percent stake in Qube into the consortium.