September 24 (SeeNews) - U.S. buyout firm Advent International will acquire approximately 75% of Bulgarian mineral water bottler Devin at a price that is expected to be in the range of 3.06 to 3.17 levs ($2.3/1.56 euro-$2.4/1.6 euro) per share, Devin said on Thursday.
Advent will buy the stake from Austrian diversified group Soravia under a deal signed late on Wednesday, Devin said in a statement.
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The deal values Devin at between 28 million and 29 million euro.
"The exact price will be determined in the time between the signing of the deal and its finalisation," Devin said.
Once the deal is cleared by the Bulgarian anti-trust regulator, Advent will launch a buyout bid to the company's minority shareholders while Devin's three incumbent executive directors will keep their combined stake of 6.75%, Devin added.
Devin (www.devin-bg.com), based in the town of the same name in southwestern Bulgaria, sells mineral, spring and carbonated bottled water as well as carbonated drinks, ice tea and the Red Bull energy drink.
Advent has financed 35 companies in Bulgaria, Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Romania and Turkey since 1994. In southeast Europe it has invested in Bulgarian telecoms group BTC, Romanian pharmaceutical company Terapia and drug maker Labormed Pharma, among others.
Advent International (www.adventinternational.com) focuses on international buyouts, strategic restructuring opportunities and growth buyouts. Advent has raised $24 billion in private equity capital and completed buyout and private equity transactions valued at over $45 billion since 1984.
Shares of Devin were trading down 6.2% at 3.05 levs by 0904 GMT on the Sofia bourse on Thursday.
(1 euro=1.95583 Bulgarian levs)