SINGAPORE: Kintetsu Express said that it agreed to pay 144 billion yen ($1.21 billion) to buy all of APL’s shares from its parent.
At the close of Tokyo trading, Kintetsu Express was worth $1.5 billion by market value. As of end December, it had current assets of 119 billion yen, including 50 billion in cash and deposits.
Kintetsu Express joins Japanese companies ranging from beverage maker Suntory Holdings Limited to telecom firm SoftBank Corporation in announcing major deals around the world since the start of 2014 to counteract sluggish trading in Japan, often paying hefty premiums.
Kintetsu Express said it was attracted by APL Logistics’ international reach, and expertise in offering logistics services for the automobile and retail industries.
The expected APL Logistics deal value is far higher than the $750 million to $900 million range that sources said Singapore based NOL had been looking for. Such a range would have valued the unit at 10 and 12 times its earnings before interest, taxes depreciation and amortization for 2013.
In the latest high profile example, camera and office equipment maker Canon Incorporation made an offer last week worth $2.83 billion for Swedish network video surveillance firm Axis AB, proposing to pay a premium of nearly 50 percent to Axis’s previous closing share price.
