19th Apr 2018 15:32
LONDON (Alliance News) - Weir Group PLC said on Thursday it has raised GBP363.0 million through a placing of 16.7 million shares at a price of 2,175 pence per share.
Shares in the FTSE 250-listed engineering company were up 5.1% at 2,225.00 pence on Thursday.
The placed shares represent about 7.4% of the Weir's existing share capital, and proceeds will go towards funding the acquisition of Portland, Oregon-based mining equipment firm ESCO Corp for an equity value of USD1.1 billion.
Goldman Sachs International and UBS Ltd were the joint bookrunners in the placing, the company said.
Weir expects to complete the transaction in the third quarter of 2018, it said. ESCO shareholders will receive 59% of the sum in cash and 41% paid in Weir shares. The cash payment will be put together from the proceeds of the share placing and the company's existing debt facilities.
In the event that the agreement does not complete, Weir said that it will retain the proceeds of the placing for other potential acquisition opportunities and general purposes.
Weir Group now has 241.4 million shares issued overall.
Related Shares:
Weir Group