Advanced Digital Broadcast Holdings (ADB) has accepted an approach from its largest shareholder, 4T, to go private. 4T, which currently holds 45.7% of the outstanding shares in ADB, has offered CHF15.50 ($16) per share to acquire the remaining shares in the company.
ADB’s board of directors said that going private was its preferred option for the company’s future development, as the process it is currently going through, of changing its business model away from hardware-based products towards software, systems and services, is expected to take a relatively long time, during which the operational results are likely to be unsteady. Consequently, ADB Group said it will not be able to provide the stability and predictability desirable for a publicly-listed company.
4T’s public tender offer for all ADB’s publicly held shares is expected to run from 20 November 2014 to 17 December 2014, with an anticipated settlement date on or about 27 January 2015. At the same time as 4T’s offer, ADB will also launch its own share repurchase program, for up to 10% of ADB’s outstanding 502,589 shares, priced the same as 4T’s public tender offer.
