CIMIC unveils $16m bid to completely take over Devine

Construction company CIMIC (ASX: CIM) has announced a $15.6 million offer to acquire all of the shares in residential property brand Devine (ASX: DVN) that it does not already own.

Spanish-German owned CIMIC, through its wholly own subsidiaries, currently controls Devine with a 59.11 per cent shareholding. If the deal goes through, DVN would become a wholly owned subsidiary of the group.

The off-market takeover at a price of $0.24 in cash per share represents a premium of 100 per cent to the last closing price of ordinary shares in Devine on 24 May 2021.

It marks CIMIC's second shot at taking over Devine, following an attempt back in 2015 to acquire the remaning securities in the company for 75 cents per share.

Devine, founded by well-known property developer David Devine who left the company in 2009, says the board is evaluating the offer and has recommended shareholders take no action in relation to the proposal.

Shares in DVN company have nearly doubled to $0.24 per share at the time of writing in response to CIMIC's offer.

However, Devine's value today is a far cry from its 2007 peak when shares were trading at an all-time high of around $5 per share. The company currently has a market capitalisation of $37.3 million.

Founded in 1983 by David Devine, DVN was once one of Brisbane's top 50 listed companies but fell off that list back in 2017.

David resigned from the company in 2009 following disagreements with directors appointed by Leighton Holdings (now called CIMIC) as well as a high-profile lawsuit involving his former secretary and a Leighton employee.

He has since gone on to continue working in property development and most recently unveiled a $105 million Gold Coast apartment project via his new vehicle Devine Development Group.

Meanwhile, Devine has been unable to recapture the highs it used to realise, and reported a $4.5 million loss for the 2020 financial year.