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Abacus Property Group (ASX:ABP) to raise $402M to strengthen balance sheet

Market News, Real Estate
ASX:ABP
08 December 2020 17:30 (AEST)

Abacus Property Group (ABP) is looking to raise $402 million to repay debt and for future acquisitions.

The company is aiming to raise the money through a non-renounceable pro-rata entitlement offer.

Eligible shareholders are invited to subscribe for one new share for every 4.8 existing shares held.

Shares will be offered at a fixed price of $2.90 each, which is a 6.5 per cent discount to the last closing price of $3.10 on Monday.

Under the raise, the real estate investment company is expecting to issue around 138.7 million shares.

Abacus’ largest shareholder, Calculator Australia, intends to take up its full entitlement in the raise.

All of the funds raised will be used to pay debt and ensure the company has enough cash for future acquisitions.

The company has, so far, already spent $205 million on acquisitions for the office and self storage sectors in the 2021 financial year.

Once the raise is complete, Abacus is expecting to have $911 million available for future purchases.

“It has been immensely pleasing for Abacus to successfully deliver on its stated strategy. Since FY19, $926 million of capital has been deployed into acquisitions in the key areas of Office and Self Storage,” Managing Director Steven Sewell said.

“This entitlement offer is expected to allow Abacus to extend its strong track record of long term value-enhancing investments by providing an additional $911
million of acquisition capacity, ensuring Abacus will be in a strong position to continue to take advantage of the significant number of opportunities in these key sectors,” he added.

Abacus entered a trading halt this morning, meaning shares will be paused until Wednesday, December 9. Abacus last traded for $3.10 on December 7.

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