Ronin Investments Managing Company Ltd. has become the largest shareholder in Advanced Vision Technology Ltd. (XETRA:VSJ) (AVT), after overcoming the resistance of a shareholder who objected to the offer to purchase. The response to the offer was 2.4 times the original offer.
Ronin, owned by Toyota Israel Ltd. owner George Horesh, offered to buy up to 1.2 million AVT shares at €7.10 per share, for a total of €9.5 million. The offer reflected a 71% premium on AVT's share price of €4.04 today, after an 11.9% gain. The offer was accepted by shareholders who own nearly 2.9 million shares altogether, and Ronin will buy 41.8% of the shares offered by these shareholders.
AVT's current market cap is $35 million, 60% less than at the beginning of the year. The company manufactures automatic print inspection and quality assurance systems for the printing industry.
As a result of the offer, Ronin will own nearly 2.9 million AVT shares, amounting to 47.24% of the company, and will set the tone for the company. Ronin previously owned 24.5% of the company. Until now, AVT had no dominant shareholder, and it will be interesting to see how Horesh will affect the company's future performance, especially at a time of global economic slowdown.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on October 29, 2008
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