Pinewood Technologies Shareholders Approve $721M Ridgeview Takeover in UK
Main Details of the Pinewood Technologies Takeover
Shareholder Approval and Voting Results
Sept 25 (Reuters) - Shareholders of British automotive software firm Pinewood Technologies on Friday approved a £545 million ($721.14 million) take-private deal by US private equity firm Ridgeview Partners.
• At a shareholder meeting on Friday, 99.76% of votes cast were in support of the takeover.
Board Recommendation and Offer Details
Board Endorsement
• Pinewood's board in August had recommended Ridgeview’s offer valuing the company at £4.48 per share in cash.
Private Equity Interest in UK Tech Firms
• Pinewood is the latest London-listed technology company to attract private equity interest as buyout firms continue to target UK-listed businesses seen as undervalued.
Deal Timeline and Effectiveness
Expected Completion Date
• The deal is expected to become effective on October 9.
Pinewood Technologies Business Overview
Platform and Services
• Pinewood provides a cloud-based platform to help car dealerships and manufacturers manage everything from vehicle sales and customer relationships to repairs and accounting.
Competing Bids and Market Performance
Apax Partners' Interest
• Pinewood had also attracted interest from Apax Partners in January, with an offer valuing it at 500 pence-per-share. But the private equity firm withdrew its approach in February citing challenging market conditions.
Share Price Performance
• Shares of Pinewood have gained about 24.16% year-to-date.
Exchange Rate Reference
($1 = 0.7557 pounds)
Reporting Credits
(Reporting by Anushka Chourasia and Unnamalai L in Bengaluru; Editing by Jonathan Ananda)
