Phillipps, Impey tops I.C.I.N.Z. offer

Press, Volume CXI, Issue 32589, 24 April 1971, Page 22

Phillipps, Impey tops I.C.I.N.Z. offer

(New Zealand Press Association) AUCKLAND, April 23. Phillipps and Impey, Ltd, Auckland paint, glass, and wallpaper merchant, has increased its offer for Guthrie Bowron and Company, Ltd, to 475 c an ordinary share. This puts a total value of $1,386,000 on the Dunedin company.

The chairman of Guthrie Bowron (Mr B. H. Guthrie), described the latest Phillipps and Impey offer as “A tremendously good one.” He said: “We will try to make some recommendation to the shareholders in the near future.” Mr Guthrie said the offer would probably be referred to a meeting of the directors next week. Under the terms of the Take-over Regulations, the directors have 14 days in which to make a recommendation to shareholders. The higher offer comes after the announcement of a counter-bid by Imperial Chemical Industries (N.Z.), Ltd. The latest Phillipps and Impey offer is five of its ordinary 50c shares—at present selling at 90c —for every

two Guthrie Bowron 100 c ordinary share, plus 100 c cash, and 150 c in 8 per cent debentures a share. 1.C.1.N.Z. offered one of its 100 c shares, plus 200 c cash for each Guthrie Bowron share. This bid was worth

408 c a share when made, and woulld be worth about 428 c now.

All three bids include an offer of 100 c a share for the 56,000 Guthrie Bowron preference shares—in the case of the Phillipps and Impey offer this is to be satisfied by a debenture issue.

1.C.1.N.Z. was refused permission to proceed with its 1969 bid under the Overseas Take-over Regulations, but it has received Ministerial consent to make its current bid. Acceptance of the latest Phillipps and Impe/ offer would increase the income of Guthrie Bowron’s shareholders from 14c to 35c a share—assuming the cash would be invested at 8 per cent.

On the same basis, income from the 1.C.1.N.Z. bid would be 26c a share.