Sitel Group strikes deal to buy Luxembourg's Majorel, shares up 16%
20/06/2022 10:19
AMSTERDAM, June 20 (Reuters) - Privately-held IT services
company Sitel Group SA has reached a preliminary agreement to
buy Luxembourg's Majorel SA MAJ.AS in a cash and shares deal
that would include a 440 million euro ($463 million) cash payout
to Majorel shareholders.
The companies, both of which operate call centres and
related services, said in a joint statement they would maintain
headquarters in Luxembourg and Majorel's listing on Euronext
Amsterdam after the deal.
If it is finalised, the new company would be 44.9% owned by
Sitel's majority shareholder the Mulliez family, with two 17.3%
stakes held by Majorel shareholders Bertelsmann Luxembourg
S.a.r.l and Saham respectively, 11.6% by Sitel and Majorel
management, and 8.8% subject to a free float, they said.
The companies plan to increase that free float to at least
20% by selling shares within a year of the deal closing, they
said.
The terms are conditional on a shareholders' vote and the
signing of final agreements, the companies said. Subject to
that, the proposed merger is expected to close in the fourth
quarter of this year or the first quarter of 2023.
Shares in Majorel initially rose more than 15% on the news
and were up 13.7% at 29.00 euros by 0906 GMT.
"The proposed combination would create a strong force with
combined pro-forma revenues of 5.4 billion euros," the companies
said in the statement.
($1 = 0.9502 euros)
(Reporting by Toby Sterling; Editing by Jan Harvey)
((toby.sterling@thomsonreuters.com;))