Bulgaria's Zahar Invest completes takeover of Zaharni Zavodi

Zahar Invest acquired the remaining 347,205 shares in Zaharni Zavodi at 6.30 levs each from 1,471 minority shareholders, the sugar producer said in a bourse filing on Friday.

In January, Zahar Invest, which at the time held a 94.071% stake in Zaharni Zavodi, submitted a tender offer to acquire the 5.929% stake it did not own, represented by 658,848 shares. The Financial Supervision Commission (FSC) approved the offer's publication in February.

Last month, Zaharni Zavodi said the buyer had purchased 311,643 of its shares as part of the proposed takeover, raising its stake to 96.876%.

Zahar Invest had the right to purchase the remaining 347,205 shares at 6.30 levs each within three months, with or without the consent of the target company's shareholders. At the same time, Zaharni Zavodi's investors who did not accept the tender offer had the right, within three months, to ask the bidder to buy their shares at the same price.

Shares in Zaharni Zavodi last traded on February 23 when they closed at 6.20 levs on the BaSE market of the Bulgarian Stock Exchange, bourse data show.

(1 euro = 1.95583 levs)