Norwegian Schibsted Group seeking to buy Alma Media for EUR 705 million

Offer announced for publisher on Tuesday morning

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Norway’s biggest media concern, Schibsted ASA, has made an unsolicited public offer to acquire Finland’s second-largest publishing and media group Alma Media for the equivalent of EUR 705 million, according to statements released to the Helsinki Exchanges on Tuesday morning by both companies.
      According to the Schibsted statement, Alma Media would be "a perfect partner". "The two companies complement each other both geographically and operationally", noted the Schibsted CEO Kjell Aamot.
      The statement continues that "It is Schibsted’s perception that Alma Media is a well-run company with skilled management and a strong position within newspapers, TV, and new media."
     
Schibsted’s public tender offer would value each Alma Media series I share at EUR 11.40 and each series II share at EUR 10.70, payable in cash. This represents a premium of 30% and 14% respectively on the series I and series II shares relative to their closing prices on Monday evening.
      The offer period is for four weeks and is conditional on Schibsted acquiring at least one-third of the voting rights in Alma Media.
     
Schibsted is listed on the Oslo Stock Exchange, and is active in newspapers, TV, and Internet operations. Among the Group’s titles are the Swedish daily Svenska Dagbladet and the late-edition tabloid Aftonbladet. A week ago the company increased its holding in the largest Swedish commercial TV station TV4 from 5% to 20%.
      In the Norwegian market, Schibsted publishes the country’s largest daily Verdens Gang and the second-largest paper Aftenposten. The company also has a majority holding in the Eesti Meedia group in Estonia, which publishes the daily Postimees among others.
     
Alma Media’s largest shareholder is the Swedish publishing house Bonniers, with around 33% of the votes. A number of Finnish insurers are also major stockholders.
      The company, which posted net income of EUR 10.8 million in 2003 on net sales of just over EUR 460 million, owns the commercial TV channel MTV3, the country’s second-largest late-edition tabloid Iltalehti, the Tampere-based broadsheet Aamulehti, the business and financial journal Kauppalehti, a nationwide commercial radio station in Radio Nova, and a clutch of provincial newspaper titles. The Group employs around 2,400 persons.
      In their own statement in response to the unsolicited tender, Alma Media’s Board has resolved to evaluate the offer after receiving and reading the prospectus.
      Schibsted, with an annual turnover in excess of EUR 1,000 million, has said it plans to finance the tender offer through a new loan facility from Danske Bank and Nordea.
      Press conferences on the matter were held in Helsinki and Oslo on Tuesday morning.


Links:
  Schibsted ASA
  Alma Media
  Schibsted press release, 21.12.2004
  OMX Helsinki Exchanges

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