Henderson Opportunities Share Discussion Threads

[wally123] 05/9/2005 10:57

Well with the share price now above the Trinity offer a counter bid by D C Thompson must be on its way.

[jaguarboy] 04/9/2005 22:14

There was an article in the Guardian today stating that D C Thomson are ready to launch a 23p a share offer:



Best of all was that if Thomson does this Trinity will then up their offer again so we could be looking at a very excting couple of weeks.

[jswift] 04/9/2005 18:41

Hi to other HOT holders


Also an article in the Mail on Sunday page 8. DC Thompson hold 3.75% and have meet with the HOT managers before the bid, the mail assumes this is a good bit of business for DC T and not likely to bid for HOT

[domestos] 03/9/2005 00:36

Thanks for that STEVEHOL29. The Independent article:

[stevehol29] 02/9/2005 20:03

The Independent reports today that acceptances from institiutions for 20% are invalid if another offer comes in and tops Trinity's by 10%, now that's interesting.

[wally123] 02/9/2005 18:12

D C Thompson buy 500,000 more stock at 20p whats that about? Now control 3.75%

You also have the other broker dealings which could be connected?

With Trinity confirming 29%, a £500k fee if the deal fails and an agreement for a final stab at it if a counter bid comes in, you would expect this to be a done deal - but it doesnt look like its over?.

At the end of the day the deal at 50 mil is very cheap indeed for this group, but they only had to show a premium to the average share price to get it at this level. DC Thompson must realise that Trinity have got it on the cheap and thats perhaps why they may be getting ready for a go at this.

Very interesting

[stevehol29] 01/9/2005 23:28

Disappointed with takeout price, has anybody got any thoughts on possibility of counter bid by DC Thompson, their latest purchase earlier in the week was a buy at 19.5p.

I am inclined to think that they have been waiting for a formal bid to emerge and may make their own move. It could have been a normal investment for them but considering it was made during takeover discussions this seems strange.

[exiges] 01/9/2005 10:46

Yep, doesn't say good things about Tony Reeves + Harvey Sinclair does it.

[patricktrfc] 01/9/2005 09:24

Sold out all mine now at 19.54. Would have expected more, but 29% acceptance already, Tony Reeves does not have much clout over the major shareholders.

Have made about 2.5K so happy enough.


Congrats to all holders for persevering!


P

[charlie100] 01/9/2005 07:43

Trinity Mirror today announced that it
has reached agreement with hotgroup on
the terms of a recommended cash offer,
to be made by UBS Investment Bank on
behalf of Trinity Mirror Acquisitions,
for the entire issued and to be issued
share capital of hotgroup.
The Offer will be 20.25p per hotgroup
Share payable in cash which values the
issued share capital of hotgroup at
approximately #50.5m.
The Offer represents a premium of
30.2% over the average Closing Price of
15.55p per hotgroup Share for the 12
month period prior to Jun. 21, 2005,
the last business day prior to the date
hotgroup announced it had received a
preliminary expression of interest in
relation to an offer;
The offer also represents a premium of
72.3% over the Closing Price of 11.75p
per hotgroup Share on Jun. 21, 2005;
and 3.8% over the Closing Price of
19.50p per hotgroup Share on Aug. 31,
2005, the last business day prior to
the date of this announcement.
The Directors of Trinity Mirror
believe that the acquisition will be
beneficial to its shareholders. It
continues Trinity Mirror's recent
strategy of pursuing carefully selected
acquisitions to deepen and strengthen
Trinity Mirror's presence in key
classified markets.
Furthermore, it will increase revenue
diversification across recruitment
services, online and print.
Trinity Mirror has received
irrevocable undertakings to accept the
Offer from the Directors of the Company
and from certain institutional
shareholders in respect of a total of
72,361,155 hotgroup Shares,
representing approximately 29.0% of the
Company's issued share capital.
The consideration payable under the
Offer will be financed through Trinity
Mirror's existing cash resources.
hotgroup has entered into an
inducement fee agreement with Trinity
Mirror Acquisitions under which
hotgroup has agreed to pay Trinity
Mirror Acquisitions a fee of #514,275
if any person announces an intention to
implement or make an Alternative
Proposal which subsequently becomes or
is declared unconditional in all
respects or is otherwise completed or
implemented; or the unanimous
recommendation of the board of hotgroup
in respect of the Offer is withdrawn or
detrimentally modified and consequently
subsequently the Offer lapses or is
withdrawn in accordance with its terms.

If a third party announces any offer
(as defined in the City Code) for the
Company, and the value of the
consideration under such third party
offer exceeds (in the reasonable
opinion of UBS) the value of the Offer,
the Company has undertaken that, if
Trinity Mirror Acquisitions announces,
within 48 hours of the announcement of
such third party offer, a revised cash
offer at a price equal to or exceeding
(in the reasonable opinion of the
hotgroup Directors, having been so
advised by Strand Partners) that of
such third party offer, the hotgroup
Directors will continue to recommend
the Offer (as revised) if the terms of
such revised Offer are more favourable.

The Offer will extend to any hotgroup
Shares which are unconditionally
allotted or issued prior to the date on
which the Offer closes (or such earlier
date as Trinity Mirror Acquisitions
may, subject to the City Code,
determine) including any such shares
allotted or issued pursuant to the
exercise of options under the hotgroup
Share Option Schemes or the exercise of
subscription rights under hotgroup
Warrants.
If the Offer becomes or is declared
unconditional in all respects, Trinity
Mirror Acquisitions intends to make
appropriate proposals to holders of
options granted under the hotgroup
Share Option Schemes to the extent that
such options have not been exercised
and to the holders of subscription
rights under the hotgroup Warrants to
the extent such subscription rights
have not been exercised.
Trinity Mirror Acquisitions has
entered into an agreement with the
holder of the #4,000,000 hotgroup
Convertible Notes (being an entity
connected with Mr J.D. Hanson, one of
the hotgroup Directors) under which
Trinity Mirror Acquisitions has agreed
to procure repayment of the hotgroup
Convertible Notes in cash at par
(together with accrued interest) within
five days of the Offer becoming or
being declared wholly unconditional.
The Noteholder has agreed that it will
not, prior to the closing or lapsing of
the Offer or its withdrawal, sell,
transfer, encumber, charge, pledge,
grant any option or other right over or
otherwise dispose of or deal with
(directly or indirectly and whether
beneficially, legally or otherwise) any
of the hotgroup Convertible Notes, or
enter into any agreement or arrangement
or permit any agreement or arrangement
to be entered into or incur or allow to
arise any obligation (conditional or
otherwise) to do any of such acts.

[exiges] 26/8/2005 10:38

-- "Not to mention those holding shares from buy outs at lower levels that will see a nice return on their money."

Often those were issued at 10p with a guaranteed future value of 20p-30p after 2yrs (loan notes) so the hike up to 20p isn't a "gain" for them.

[mdchand] 26/8/2005 09:01

DC thomson still buying I notice - is this simply to force additional pressure on hotgroup to setle with them, or have they decided to maximise their return because they know a higher bid is waiting in the wings?

[richtc] 25/8/2005 20:53

On the face of it Hotonline should be worth a lot more than 50 million based on current internet company valuations, probably more like more than twice that however, you have to remember that the share price was tanking prior to the bid interest ie 11p.

Investors were obviously losing interest in the company and at 20p thats one heck of a premium to the 11p price it was earlier.

Tony Reeves will no doubt not want to sell at £50 million, i dare say he probably earns a good whack a year out of Hot and if the newspapers have it right £50 million will give him about £2 million which is not a lot if they buy it and wave goodbye to him and his wages!. But at the end of the day, its not his call is it? - He can advise shareholders to wait it out but frankly at 20p thats a high return on the previous shareprice level and shareholders were not previously confident hence the low price. Not to mention those holding shares from buy outs at lower levels that will see a nice return on their money.

Investors look for returns, so bottom line as i see it is that the takeover may well go ahead at 20p because they may not have to bid anymore than that to secure it.

Only alternative is if one of the others wants to trump that offer to get it - Im amazed that the publishers didnt all get together and buy it out on a shared arrangement like Fish4jobs.

[exiges] 25/8/2005 14:26

I'd be surprised if Tony Reeves sold it for £50M to be honest.

[stevehol29] 24/8/2005 22:42

I'm still in here, hoping for 20p+, that makes more sense especially given DC Thompson's interest

[mdchand] 24/8/2005 13:39

Noticed D C Thomson nibbled another 2m at 19p.....perhaps this isnt such a clear cut take-out at 20p after all.......

[patricktrfc] 24/8/2005 10:05

MdChand

Well done on an excellent profit, if you are worried about a T Trade expiring, ak your broker to roll it, much less spread than a straight buy sell.

Heres to a rich Friday!

P

[mdchand] 24/8/2005 09:59

patrick - looks like its just us whose playing this for the end game. been in since 12p the day before they announced the bid. have a large t position so more then happy for a 20p take out. just wish they would hurry up now!

[patricktrfc] 24/8/2005 09:52

Charlie thanks for the info


Was given a hard copy of your report (Inv News Dow Jones?) myself this morning from work, but couldn't cut and paste it.

£50M = 20p, I have 100,000 shares at 17.5 so happy enough, although would have liked say 25p. About 50M could mean say 22p which would be just fine and dandy!


P

[charlie100] 24/8/2005 09:43

New story published last night, on wires


Trinity Mirror, the UK's largest
newspaper publisher, is expected to
announce as early as the end of this
week that it will buy online recruit-
ment company The Hotgroup for about
#50m, a person familiar with the
situation said this evening.
Trinity Mirror has outbid rivals Daily
Mail & General Trust and Johnston Press
afterg a three-way auction, the source
told Dow Jones Newswires.
Trinity Mirror declined to comment.
The newspaper group is keen to build
its exposure to the online jobseekers'
market after a drop in advertising in
key regional publications.
The company said in its most recent
trading update that regional recruit-
ment advertising had fallen 12% in June
on a like-for-like basis.
Total advertising revenue for the 26
weeks to July 3 was expected to have
declined by 0.4% year-on-year, compared
with growth of 5.1% in the same period
a year earlier, it said.
Trinity's purchase of The Hotgroup
underlines the growing importance of
online recruitment in shoring up the
decline in newspaper recruitment
advertising.
In the 12 months to December 31, 2004,
The Hotgroup made an operating loss of
#13.1m, on sales of #37.4m.
The AIM-listed company, which has made
10 acquisitions in 16 months, is the
UK's largest online recruitment site
measured by unique users. It bought
Workthing.com from the Guardian Media
Group in 2004, and now has over 1m
unique users per month, according to a
company statement in February.
Earlier this month Trinity Mirror said
that it will buy Financial Jobs Online
Limited, the owner of GAAPweb.com, the
UK online recruitment site serving the
accountancy and finance sector for up
to #13m.

[patricktrfc] 23/8/2005 12:36

News this week? A 2,400,000 Broker to Broker trade, the biggest share price rise for a month.......hmmmmmmmmm

P

[mdchand] 22/8/2005 09:27

Well, if the market really thought the take out price was 50m or c. 19p then I would have expected the MM's to mark the stock down first thing today. They're holding out for more as am I.

[patricktrfc] 22/8/2005 08:54

Kempson

Thanks for the info , I hope you are right

Have seen a purple Reliant Scimitar that is almost too much to resist!!


P

[kempson01] 22/8/2005 08:49

The waiting is almost over according to the Sunday Express yesterday:

'Trinity Mirror is the favourite to take over recruitment company Hotgroup in an auction that could finish as early as this week'.

[domestos] 22/8/2005 00:48

thanks for info mdchand

Observer link: