Permodalan Nasional Bhd (PNB) has declined Sunway Bhd’s voluntary takeover offer (VTO) for its 13.3% stake in IJM Corp Bhd, citing the offer’s low valuation, small cash component, and IJM’s strong dividend prospects and long-term growth potential.
In a statement on Monday, PNB said its board investment committee evaluated IJM’s intrinsic value against Sunway’s RM3.15 offer price and the potential future gains from the new Sunway shares to be issued. After a thorough and independent assessment, the fund concluded the offer did not meet its investment criteria or fiduciary duty to unit holders.
PNB noted that IJM’s market price has long undervalued the company’s fundamentals and stressed that the decision should not be taken as guidance for other shareholders, who are encouraged to make their own assessment.
Independent adviser M&A Securities also recommended rejecting the offer, highlighting that Sunway’s price represents a discount of up to 51% compared with IJM’s estimated value. The offer includes 10% cash (31.5 sen per share) and 90% new Sunway shares at 0.501 shares per IJM share, totaling around 1.76 billion new shares and RM1.1 billion in cash.
Government-linked investment companies collectively hold about 45% of IJM, including the Employees Provident Fund (20.52%) and KWAP (9.64%).
Sunway had set a deadline of April 6 for shareholders to accept the offer. Tan Sri Jeffrey Cheah, Sunway’s founder, previously warned the group would abandon the acquisition if it did not secure enough support.
IJM shares closed at RM2.31 on Monday, down one sen, valuing the company at RM8.43 billion. Sunway closed at RM5.15, up one sen, for a market value of RM35.05 billion.
