Berjaya acquires majority control of luxury car dealer

MANILA, Philippines - The local unit of Malaysian conglomerate Berjaya Corp. has finally secured a majority stake in a British luxury car distributor following numerous bids to buy out its shareholders.

Berjaya Philippines Inc. wants to secure more shares as it extends anew its tender offer for minority stockholders of London-based car distributor H.R. Owen, the company said in a disclosure.

“[Berjaya Philippines] currently holds at least 11.84 billion shares representing 50.16 percent of the outstanding shares or voting rights of H.R. Owen,” the company said.

The majority stake was secured following a block sale in June and numerous tender offers since July, Berjaya Philippines said.

But the offer to buy out minority stockholders is still on the table as part of the company’s plan to secure tighter control on H.R. Owen.

“[Berjaya Philippines] has issued an unconditional offer to acquire all outstanding shares of H.R. Owen not already acquired by the issuer at the same price of 170 pence per share,” the local firm said.

Minority stockholders can accept the takeover offer of Berjaya Philippines until Oct. 11, extended from the previous Sept. 27 deadline.

Early this month, Berjaya Philippines sweetened its offer to 170 pence per share from 130 apiece, valuing H.R. Owen at 43.2 million pounds (around P2.99 billion) from the previous 32.5 million pounds (around P2.25 billion).

The first takeover offer attempt took place on July 29 to Aug. 19 but the H.R. Owen management rejected the buy out, saying Berjaya Philippines undervalued the company’s shares. Berjaya Philippines then extended the tender offer to Sept. 2 and again to Sept. 16 and Sept. 27.

In June, Berjaya Philippines expanded its car dealership business by acquiring 29.81 percent of H.R. Owen for P540.36 million as a long-term investment in line with its diversification strategy.

H.R. Owen is involved in both sales and aftersales of brands like Aston Martin, Audi, Bentley, BMW, Bugatti, Ferrari, Lamborghini, Lotus, Maserati, Mini, Pagani and Rolls-Royce, predominantly in the London.

The local unit of the Malaysian conglomerate is diversifying its income source.

Its first venture into car dealership is through Mazda. Berjaya Philippines is the sole distributor of Mazda vehicles, parts, and accessories in the Philippines.

In May, Berjaya Philippines bought 2.38 percent of the common shares, convertible debts and warrants of Redtone International Berhad, an information technology firm listed in Kuala Lumpur stock exchange Bursa, for P275.68 million.

In February, Berjaya Philippines spent more than $7.48 million to buy two percent of Atlan Holdings Berhad, a property firm and duty free retailer in Malaysia. The listed company is also holding Atlan’s shares as a near term investment.

Locally, Berjaya Philippines supplies equipment for lottery operations in Luzon and owns the Berjaya hotel in Makati. It also holds the local franchise for pizza restaurant Papa John’s.

Berjaya Philippines is looking to build more hotels in the country, including the luxury Four Seasons Hotel, and produce consumer goods in anticipation of higher consumption and tourism growth.