B. Philp ponders counter-bid

Press, 2 May 1981, Page 21

B. Philp ponders counter-bid

PA Sydney Burns Philp and Company, Ltd, and QBE Insurance, Ltd, are considering their options after the sAust6464M bid for Mercantile Mutual Insurance Company, • Ltd, by F.A.I. Insurance, Ltd. Burns Philp and QBE, which jointly control about 20 per cent of Mercantile Mutual, are examining financial aspects of the alternatives available to them. Burns Philp’s general manager and QBE director, Mr Philip Best, said. A counterbid for Mercantile Mutual was one possibility, he said. Burns Philp and QBE were not interested in accepting F.A.l.’s bid at present.

F.A.l.’s chairman, Mr Lawrence Adler, announced the take-over offer of 400 c a share on Tuesday. However, Mercantile Mutual shares traded up to 415 c on Wednesday with the bulk of the 192,000 shares traded nationally going to Horden, Utz and Bode, the Sydney brokers, for an unnamed client. Other brokers said the buyer was likely to be friendly to the Mercantile Mutual board, however, at least some of the buying appeared to come from speculators banking on hopes that Mercantile Mutual’s last reported net tangible asset backing of 468 c a share would prompt a higher bid.