A consortium of investors including the Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec, the Solidarity Fund and a holding company of the founding Dutil family moved Thursday to privatize Manac Inc. of St. Georges-de-Beauce, the largest manufacturer of semi-trailers in Canada and one of Quebec Inc.’s pioneers.
Under the terms of the transaction, shareholders of the publicly traded company are being offered $10.20 in cash, a premium of 12.4 per cent on the Toronto Stock Exchange closing price of the last 20 days. They’ll be asked to approve the deal at a special meeting Oct. 7. The board has endorsed it unanimously.
The deal values Canam Inc. at $186 million. The company was spun off from the Canam Manac Group in 2004 and went public in 2013.
The Caisse, Solidarity Fund and Investissement Québec each will be providing $17 million in capital and $15 million in loans, while the Fonds Manufacturier Québec is putting up $8 million in capital.
The Dutil family, through the holding company controlled by founder Marcel Dutil, is committing $36 million. It will emerge with a 38-per-cent stake in the company, while the Caisse, Solidarity Fund and Investissement Québec each will hold 18 per cent and the Fonds Manufacturier 8 per cent.
“This transaction puts Manac back under full Quebec control and will give good stability to ownership. Our partners will play an important role in the new phase of Manac’s growth. The business will be 50 years old next year, and this transaction is an important step for its continuity and its strong presence in Quebec,” the Dutil family said in a statement.
Caisse vice-president Christian Dubé called Manac a Quebec-based business leader with a history of profitability and innovation.
Headed by Charles Dutil, who will remain as president, Manac reported revenue of $331 million and net income of $10 million in the 2014 fiscal year. In addition to the plant in St. Georges-de-Beauce, it has two in Missouri.