EQT Lifts Perpetual Takeover Bid to A$2.55 Billion in Third Offer

Swedish private equity firm EQT on Monday increased its takeover offer for Australian financial services group Perpetual Ltd. (ASX:PPT) for the third time this month, raising its bid to A$2.55 billion ($1.78 billion) as it intensifies its pursuit of the wealth manager.

The Revised Offer

The revised non-binding proposal values Perpetual at A$22.50 per share in cash, a figure that represents a premium of nearly 19% to the stock's last closing price. In response to the announcement, Perpetual's shares climbed about 2.5% to A$19.4, outpacing the 0.9% gain in the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index.

This latest bid is a step up from EQT's mid-July proposal of A$22.07 per share and its initial approach of A$21.64 per share on July 1. Perpetual's board had previously rejected the lower offers, stating that they undervalued the company.

Strategic Context and Conditions

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EQT's pursuit focuses on Perpetual's corporate trust and asset management operations. The offer is strategically timed as Perpetual reshapes its business, with the deal's success being contingent on the completion of Perpetual's planned sale of its wealth management and corporate services business to Bain Capital.

Perpetual confirmed the proposal remains subject to several key conditions. According to the company, these include:

• The successful completion of due diligence by EQT.
• Obtaining all necessary regulatory approvals.
• The negotiation and execution of definitive transaction documents.