By Bernadette Hogg and Alexander Hübner
MUNICH -Czech investment firm PPF will not raise its cash offer of 7 euros ($7.99) per share for German media company ProSiebenSat.1, it said on Friday, after MFE-MediaForEurope sweetened its rival bid earlier this week.
Italy’s Berlusconi-family controlled MFE group’s cash and shares bid currently values each ProSieben share at 8.01 euros, implying a total valuation of 1.8 billion euros for the company. ProSieben’s shares are trading around 8 euros.
PPF, the second-biggest investor in ProSieben, whose offer would double its stake to 29.99%, said it remained convinced that its strategy for an independent ProSieben was superior to MFE’s plans to create a pan-European broadcaster.
The Czech conglomerate, which owns private TV stations in six central and East European countries, said its all-cash offer was “its best and final” and compared favourably to the cash-and-share bid, “because it provides absolute certainty of value to current shareholders”.
“We are pleased that our offer triggered a significantly improved offer by MFE creating more value for all ProSiebenSat.1 shareholders,” said PPF investment director Kasper Taczek, who asked shareholders to weigh their options very carefully.
MFE is looking to tighten its grip on Munich-based ProSieben. Already ProSieben’s largest shareholder with a 33% stake, MFE increased the share component of its offer on Monday.
The company, which operates in Italy and Spain, said a potential tie-up with ProSieben could deliver an upside in operating profit of up to 419 million within four years.
Both offers end on August 13.
ProSieben, which has been striving to remain independent, is set to publish its board’s opinion on MFE’s revised offer early next week.
($1 = 0.8758 euros)
(Reporting by Bernadette Hogg and Alexander Huebner, additional reporting and writing by Elvira Pollina in Milan, Editing by Miranda Murray and Elaine Hardcastle)
