ATON EXTENDS LONG STOP DATE FOR M&R MANDATORY BUYOUT OFFER

German family-owned holding company ATON has again extended the long stop date for completing the mandatory buyout of JSE-listed construction group Murray & Roberts’ (M&R’s) shares, from June 30 to September 30.

Owing to pending merger control clearances and competition authority approvals from South African and Canadian authorities, ATON has been extending the long stop date for its intended transaction since mid-2018.

ATON in March 2018 announced plans to buy all shares in M&R it did not already own for R15 apiece.

An independent board established by M&R said this largely undervalued the company’s shares and advised shareholders to vote against the transaction.

ATON then increased its offer to R17 apiece in May 2018; however, it remained below the independent board’s estimate of the company’s worth at between R20 and R22 a share.

ATON had also, in the meantime, increased its shareholding in M&R to 44%, triggering a mandatory offer for the remainder of M&R’s shares. https://www.engineeringnews.co.za/article/aton-extends-long-stop-date-for-mr-mandatory-buyout-offer-2019-06-27/rep_id:4136