BGH Group ups Virtus Health takeover bid to $653m

BGH Group ups Virtus Health takeover bid to $653m

Photo: Virtus Health

After successfully preventing rival suitor CapVest from entering a formal deal to acquire Virtus Health (ASX: VRT) before 11 March, BGH Capital has upped the ante in its attempt to take over the Sydney-headquartered fertility multinational.

On 20 January the Virtus board revealed its intentions to recommend a $649 million takeover bid from CapVest at $7.60 per share, representing a solid premium to BGH's earlier offer of $7.10 per share.

Melbourne-based BGH demonstrated its seriousness from the get-go by securing a 9.99 per cent stake in Virtus, and around three weeks after CapVest entered the ring the original suitor then doubled that shareholding to almost 20 per cent.

BGH took umbrage with the rival bid and in response sought a declaration of unacceptable circumstances from the Australian Government's Takeovers Panel, which was successful with orders given that Virtus and CapVest could not enter an agreement to effect the latter's proposal until 11 March.

The order also forced Virtus and CapVest to amend a process deed clarifying how they would operate if the target received a takeover proposal, as has happened today with BGH making a slightly higher bid of $7.65 per share.

However, what BGH is proposing goes beyond strictly monetary terms, with the suitor and substantial shareholder hoping the potential for current investors to remain on the register could turn their votes around.

"BGH has noted that major fertility specialist shareholders and certain other affiliated shareholders (the “Doctor Shareholders”) may wish to continue their exposure to Virtus, and that they propose to provide a cash and scrip alternative to the Doctor Shareholders to enable them to do so," Virtus said in today's release.

"BGH intends to fund the acquisition through a combination of equity and debt financing. Equity financing will come from BGH Fund I, and BGH advises that they have received highly confident debt financing letters from a number of institutions to support a binding proposal."

The Virtus board is yet to evaluate the revised proposal, and also released the following statement from BGH:

"BGH will vote all Virtus shares that it owns or controls at the relevant time against any CapVest proposal to acquire Virtus by way of scheme of arrangement, and BGH will not accept into any takeover offer from CapVest with respect to all Virtus shares that it owns or controls at the relevant time," BGH stated.

Virtus is one of the world's top five assisted reproductive services companies with market-leading positions in Australia, Ireland and Denmark, as well as a growing presence in Singapore and the UK.

Shares in VRT are up 2.76 per cent to $7.45 per share at 3.56pm AEDT.

Enjoyed this article?

Don't miss out on the knowledge and insights to be gained from our daily news and features.

Subscribe today to unlock unlimited access to in-depth business coverage, expert analysis, and exclusive content across all devices.

Support independent journalism and stay informed with stories that matter to you.

Subscribe now and get 50% off your first year!

SMEs urged to consider business insurance to mitigate financial risks
Partner Content
A single “bad luck” incident could cause financial disaster for many Australian sma...
Advertisement

Related Stories

Bailador tops up investment in volunteer management software scale-up Rosterfy

Bailador tops up investment in volunteer management software scale-up Rosterfy

Privately held shares in global volunteer management platform Roste...

Quantum computing group Q-CTRL secures $87m top-up for a record $167m Series B capital raise

Quantum computing group Q-CTRL secures $87m top-up for a record $167m Series B capital raise

Sydney-based quantum computing group Q-CTRL has expanded its Series...

Lendlease partners with Nippon Steel Kowa Real Estate for $500m build-to rent project at Docklands

Lendlease partners with Nippon Steel Kowa Real Estate for $500m build-to rent project at Docklands

National developer Lendlease (ASX: LLC) and Nippon Steel Kowa Real ...

Federal Court shows Qantas no mercy with $100m fine for selling cancelled flight tickets

Federal Court shows Qantas no mercy with $100m fine for selling cancelled flight tickets

The Federal Court has shown Qantas Airways no mercy for selling tic...