Slater & Gordon (SGH) shares were suspended from trading yesterday to allow the legal services group to kick off an accelerated fund raising among big investors that will look to raise $890 million, at $6.37 share, to fund the big expansion of its UK operations.
The raising will be in the form of a fully underwritten two-for-three entitlement offer.
The issue price in the issue will be at a 15% discount to Friday’s $7.55 closing price.
The remainder of the purchase price will be funded by $375 million of bank debt, with the company saying it is expects to maintain its gearing at 30% to 40%.
SGH 1Y – Slater & Gordon in ‘transformational’ purchase
Slater & Gordon says it will pay $1.225 billion for the professional services division of UK firm Quindell (although some UK estimates put it at close to $1.4 billion).
The company said in a statement to the ASX that the purchase was "transformational" and was in line with its growth ambitions in the UK.
Quindell shareholders will vote on the deal on April 17, which was unanimously approved by the board.
