AGRIBUSINESS powerhouse Louis Dreyfus (LDC ) has issued a counter offer to Namoi Cotton shareholders in the latest installment of the battle between Dreyfus and Singaporean ag giant Olam for the cotton business.
However the offer is unlikely to have shareholders' pulses raising, with Louis Dreyfus increasing its bid for the shares it does not own in Namoi by just seven cents to 67 cents a share.
This compares to Olam's bid of 70c a share.
Louis Dreyfus officials are confident that due to its 17 per cent stake in Namoi it will be able to get the deal done in spite of the headline offer being less than Olam.
The Olam offer is conditional on the business being able to acquire 90pc of the business, which it cannot do without LDC approval.
LDC said in a statement that the offer represented a significant premium to Namoi's undisturbed historical market prices, being 89pc above the November 27, 2023 share price of 35.5c and a 12pc increase on LDC's initial offer.
The LDC offer opens today, 7 May 2024, and will close on 7 June 2024, unless extended as permitted by the Corporations Act.
With the two multinationals circling the Namoi board will have a decision to make as to which offer they recommend to shareholders.
The first LDC offer won the recommendation of the board, however they are yet to comment publicly since the Olam bid was entered.
In a statement to the Australian Stock Exchange Samuel Terry Asset Management, (STAM), which holds a 24.2pc share in Namoi backed the Olam bid.
There was a small spike in the Namoi share price in the wake of the LDC revised offer, with shares rising 1.3pc to 73c.
Gregor Heard
Gregor Heard is ACM's national grains industry reporter, based in Horsham, Victoria. He has a wealth of knowledge surrounding the cropping sector through his 15 years in the role. Prior to that he was with the Fairfax network as a reporter with Stock & Land. Some of the major issues he has reported on during his time with the company include the deregulation of the export wheat market, the introduction of genetically modified crops and the fight to protect growers better from grain trader insolvencies. Still involved with the family farm he is passionate about rural Australia and its people and hopes to use his role to act as an advocate for those involved in the grain sector.
Gregor Heard is ACM's national grains industry reporter, based in Horsham, Victoria. He has a wealth of knowledge surrounding the cropping sector through his 15 years in the role. Prior to that he was with the Fairfax network as a reporter with Stock & Land. Some of the major issues he has reported on during his time with the company include the deregulation of the export wheat market, the introduction of genetically modified crops and the fight to protect growers better from grain trader insolvencies. Still involved with the family farm he is passionate about rural Australia and its people and hopes to use his role to act as an advocate for those involved in the grain sector.
