Blackmores Shares Jump 21% on Kirin's A$1.84 Billion Takeover Proposal

By Stuart Condie

SYDNEY--Blackmores Ltd. shares are on course for their highest close since December 2021 after the Australian vitamin and supplements maker recommended shareholders vote in favor of a takeover proposal by Kirin Holdings Co. Ltd.

The stock was 21% higher on Thursday at A$93.07 after Blackmores said that Kirin had proposed a cash offer of A$95.00 a share. Blackmores would also pay a special dividend of A$3.34 a share upon implementation of the takeover scheme, which values the company at about 1.84 billion Australian dollars (US$1.22 billion).

The share-price jump would be Blackmores' largest in a single day since February 2014. The company's shares closed at a record A$220.90 in January 2016 but have largely bounced between A$60 and A$90 over the past three years.

The Blackmores board has unanimously recommended that shareholders vote in favor of the proposal at a meeting likely to be held in July. Marcus Blackmore, the son of the company's founder and its largest shareholder, agreed to vote his 18% holding in favor of the scheme, Blackmores said in a market filing.

Write to Stuart Condie at stuart.condie@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

April 26, 2023 21:17 ET (01:17 GMT)

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