Bethunes shareholders approve deal to let Transport Investments use its NZX listing

Bethunes Investments shareholders have approved a reverse listing deal that will see the NZX-listed company used as a vehicle for freight and logistics firm Transport Investments to go public.

The company's shareholders signed off on the deal at a special meeting in Auckland today. They will own 0.6 percent of the transport group, which has an enterprise value of $200 million. Bethunes will change its name to TIL Logistics Group Limited and its NZX ticker code to TLL from BIL, with trading to start on Dec. 7.

"This transaction secures the future of TIL as one of New Zealand's leading domestic freight and logistics companies and we are looking forward to taking advantage of a range of genuine growth opportunities which are available to TIL," said current TIL chair Jim Ramsay, in a statement.

The transactions are expected to be completed tomorrow. Existing Bethunes directors will resign and be replaced by a new board of directors comprising Jim Ramsay, Trevor Janes, Lorraine Witten, Danny Chan and Greg Kern, it said. Janes is to take over as chair.

TIL had planned to list through an initial public offering, but gave up on those plans in mid-2017 after being advised "market conditions were not conducive, in part because of the New Zealand general election and likely resulting market uncertainty." It began discussions with Bethunes in August.

TIL expects to report a statutory loss of $10.3 million on revenue of $327.8 million in the year ending June 30, 2018, turning to a profit of $11.1 million on revenue of $335.5 million the following year, when it would expect to pay dividends of 7.4 cents per share, representing a gross yield of 6.8 percent.

(BusinessDesk)