Photo by: Bloomberg
PERTH (miningweekly.com) - The shareholders of NYSE- and TSX-listed Newmont have backed the A$26-billion takeover offer for Australian gold miner Newcrest Mining.
Newmont noted that more than 96% of the votes cast at the company’s shareholder meeting were voted in favour of the acquisition.
“Recognizing the strategic rationale to create the industry’s strongest portfolio of world class gold and copper assets, Newmont’s shareholders overwhelmingly voted in favour of this transformational transaction,” said Newmont president and CEO Tom Palmer.
“This unrivalled platform, featuring the industry’s best talent running the highest concentration of Tier 1 assets in the most favorable jurisdictions, uniquely positions Newmont to generate superior returns for decades.”
Under the offer, Newcrest shareholders will receive 0.4 Newmont shares for each Newcrest shares held, with Newcrest additionally permitted to pay a fully franked special pre-completion dividend of up to $1.10 a share.
The offer values Newcrest shares at A$29.27 each and implies an equity value of A$26.2-billion and an enterprise value of A$28.8-billion to Newcrest.
The offer represented a 30.4% premium to Newcrest’s undisturbed closing price of A$22.45 a share on February 3, and a 39.1% premium to the company’s undisturbed 30-day volume weighted average share price.
Newcrest shareholders will meet on Friday to vote on the transaction.
In addition to Newcrest shareholder approval, the transaction also remained subject to court approvals.