Assura has rejected a bid for the company from a consortium comprising Universities Superannuation Scheme (USS) and US private equity giant KKR valuing it at £1.562bn.
USS and KKR have submitted four indicative non-binding proposals to the Assura board regarding a possible cash offer for the company – the most recent at 48.0p per share, which was sent on 13 February 2025.
On Saturday 15 February, the board rejected the latest proposal. Following the rejection of the latest proposal, USS has said that it does not intend to make an offer for Assura, as part of the consortium or otherwise.
The latest proposal represented a:
- 28.2% premium to the closing share price of 37.4p on 13 February 2025;
- 2.8% discount to Assura’s EPRA Net Tangible Asset Value per Share of 49.4p as at 30 September 2024;
- 30.1% premium to the volume weighted average Assura share price of 36.9p over the last month; and
- 26.9% premium to the volume weighted average Assura share price of 37.8p over the last three months.
KKR said that it believes that the terms of the latest proposal offer a highly attractive opportunity for Assura shareholders to realise their investment in cash at a significant premium to prevailing market prices.
It added that it was considering whether there was any merit in continuing to try and engage with the board. There can be no certainty that any firm offer for the company will be made. A further announcement will be made as and when appropriate.
KKR must, by not later than 14 March 2025, either announce a firm intention to make an offer for the company or announce that it does not intend to make an offer.
Assura’s board said that it “remains confident in the long-term prospects of the company and believes that Assura is strongly positioned to create value for shareholders”.
[QD comment: This is the latest in a long line of bids for undervalued property companies over the past few months, which exposes the absurdly wide discounts to NAV that these companies are currently trading at. We have seen many a property company taken out or merged at a discount to NAV and a vast premium to share price, and yet there has been no real reaction. Until discounts start to narrow, the sector will continue to be targeted by private equity and other institutional investors that recognise the value on offer.]
