31st Jul 2014 08:27
LONDON (Alliance News) - Hyder Consulting PLC saw its shares surge Thursday after it reached an agreement to be acquired by Arcadis UK Investments BV, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Arcadis NV, at a 39% premium.
The deal would see Arcadis acquire the entire issued share capital of Hyder for 650 pence per share, valuing the firm at GBP256.2 million.
The price represents a 39% premium on Hyder's closing price of 469 pence per share on July 30. Hyder shares rose 37% to 642 pence in early trade Thursday, putting it in the top five risers on the London main market.
AUK Investments will fund the deal via a new acquisition financing facility provided by HSBC, ING Bank NV and BNP Paribas Fortis SA/NV.
News of the acquisition came as Hyder, a design and engineering consultancy, said trading in the first quarter was in line with expectations.
The firm said it had increased its order book in Australia and said its order book remains strong in the Middle East. In the UK, the firm said results were ahead of the year before and expectations, with a particularly strong performance for its rail unit. It added its performance in Germany was improving and it was reducing losses from the business.
By Sam Unsted; [email protected]; @SamUAtAlliance
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