Takeover talks between Thomson Corporation and Reuters were clearly much more advanced than was generally realised on Friday, when news of discussions leaked, sending Reuters’stock hurtling higher.
On Tuesday, while warning that this was a complex transaction that could yet fail to materialise, a joint statement from the two companies set out their plans in some detail. Here are the snaps:
- Cash and shares deal worth 705p per Reuters share at Thomson’s closing price of C$48.46 in Toronto on Thursday. That’s 697p-a-share after Friday’s market shenanigans, valuing Reuters at £8.77bn.
- Proposed dual listed structure, with new enlarged company remaining in Thomson and Reuters’ existing equity indices. “Single economic entity…retaining their separate legal identities.”
- Some £250m of synergies expected within three years.
- Interim and final dividends, worth 12p in total, payable by Reuters.
- Woodbridge, the Thomson family holding company, would own 53 per cent of Thomson-Reuters, other Thomson shareholders 23 per cent and Reuters shareholders 24 per cent.
- Thomson-Reuters to adopt the Reuters Trust Principles and Reuters Founders Share Company structure. Woodbridge to use its voting control to support this.
- Reuters’ Tom Glocer to be chief executive, Thomson president and CEO Richard Harrington to retire.
- Holding company to be called Thomson-Reuters; combined financial data and financial media business to be called Reuters.
This entry was posted by Paul Murphy on Tuesday, May 8th, 2007 at 7:30 and is filed under M&A.
Tagged with reuters, thomson.