Billionaire’s buyout offer for Pact labelled too cheap
The independent directors of ailing packaging group Pact Group have told shareholders to reject a takeover bid by Rich Lister Raphael Geminder, who already owns just over 50 per cent of the company.
An independent board committee led by director Michael Wachtel has told the remaining shareholders to reject the 68¢ a share offer made by Mr Geminder in mid-September, because an independent expert, Kroll Australia, had valued the shares at between $1.06 and $1.51.
The independent committee unanimously recommended that Pact shareholders reject the offer from Mr Geminder’s Kin Group because it is “neither fair nor reasonable”.
Rich Lister Raphael Geminder owns just over 50 per cent of Pact Group. But independent directors have told shareholders to reject a buyout offer of 68c, with the company valued much higher.
Mr Wachtel said the offer by Mr Geminder was “opportunistic”.
“Kin Group is attempting to increase its level of control over Pact without paying a customary premium,” a letter from Mr Wachtel accompanying the official target’s statement said on Friday. Pact shares were trading at 72¢; Mr Geminder pitched his offer at 68¢ a share, a small premium to the 67.5¢ a share at which Pact closed the day before the offer was made.
Mr Wachtel, who is also a director of the Future Fund, has been on the board of Pact since early 2020.
Mr Geminder made his fortune in packaging, and wants to take Pact off the ASX in a deal that values the company at just $234 million.
The manufacturer of plastic bottles, vitamin and beverage containers had a sharemarket capitalisation of $1.6 billion just two years ago. But its profits were crunched by surging inflation in raw materials, and the heavy investment in modernising its plants to
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