Beverly Enterprises to be acquired
FORT SMITH, Ark. (AP) – Beverly Enterprises Inc., which has been embroiled in a takeover fight, announced Wednesday that it has agreed to be acquired by North American Senior Care Inc. Shares in the Fort Smith-based nursing home company will be acquired for $12.80 each, putting a $1.9 billion price tag on the transaction, which includes repayment of debt owed by Beverly. The company did not say in its statement what the amount of debt was.
A group of investors led by Alpharetta, Ga.-based Formation Capital LLC attempted an unfriendly takeover of Beverly, a move that was announced in January. In response, Beverly put the company up for auction. Beverly chief executive William Floyd said North American Senior Care won the bidding.
“The North American Senior Care bid offered the best combination of price, terms and conditions. We believe this transaction fairly reflects for our stockholders the many improvements we have made throughout BEI in recent years, as well as our strong operating and financial momentum.” Floyd said in the statement.
“In particular, this is demonstrated by the more than 40 percent premium to our share price during December of last year, which was prior to the fluctuations caused by an unsolicited expression of interest,” he said.
Beverly’s headquarters will be retained in Fort Smith, according to Leonard Grunstein, spokesman for North American Senior Care.
Shareholders must approve the sale; the board approved it and recommend that shareholders follow do as well.
Shares of Beverly fell 33 cents, or 2.6 percent, to $12.61 in midday trading on the New York Stock Exchange.
AP-ES-08-17-05 1206EDT