Tycoon Gordon Tang and wife raise their offer for Suntec Reit to $1.19 per unit
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The closing date of the offer has been extended to 5.30pm on Feb 5, from Jan 20 previously.
ST PHOTO: LIM YAOHUI
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SINGAPORE - Property tycoon Gordon Tang and his wife Celine, through their vehicle Aelios, have increased their cash offer for Suntec Real Estate Investment Trust (Reit) to $1.19 per unit, from $1.16 previously.
The revised offer, announced after the stock market closed on Jan 8, represents a 2.6 per cent premium to Suntec Reit’s closing price on Dec 4, the last trading day before the original offer was made.
Unit holders who have accepted the previous offer are also entitled to the revised offer price, subject to the offer becoming or being declared unconditional in all respects. Additionally, the closing date of the offer has been extended to 5.30pm on Feb 5, from Jan 20 previously.
The Tangs made a mandatory conditional offer for units of Suntec Reit they did not already own on Dec 5, 2024, after Aelios acquired some 62.5 million units, or 2.1 per cent of the Reit’s total units in market transactions on the same day. That raised the couple’s stake in the Reit to 31.45 per cent, triggering a mandatory offer.
The offer will turn unconditional once Aelios receives 50 per cent or more of Suntec Reit’s total units. As at Jan 8, Aelios owns 33.32 per cent of the Reit’s units.
Aelios has said the offer was made solely to comply with the takeover code, and it intends to maintain the listing status of the Reit on the Singapore Exchange.
Mr Xavier Lee, equity analyst with research house Morningstar, recommended investors reject Aelios’ revised $1.19 offer, saying it “still falls below our fair value estimate of $1.38 per unit”.
Said Mr Lee: “We believe the revision of the offer price is to comply with the Singapore Code on takeovers and mergers, as Aelios acquired 18 million shares in the open market for $1.19 per unit. According to the code, Aelios must match or exceed the price paid in the open market to ensure fair treatment of all shareholders.”
He added that given the Reit’s unit price has rallied above $1.19, investors can get more value by selling in the open market as opposed to taking up the revised offer.
Earlier, RHB had recommended unit holders reject the previous $1.16 offer
Units in Suntec Reit closed up one cent, or 0.8 per cent, at $1.21 on Jan 9.
