Ultimate Finance's owner Bentley Park moves to fold the AIM lender into a combined £650m loan book business.
Time Finance (AIM: TIME) has agreed to a recommended £55.1m cash takeover by Bentley Park, the parent company of specialist lender Ultimate Finance, in a deal that will see another AIM stalwart exit the public markets.
Shareholders are being offered 59.1p in cash for each share held, a 12.6% premium to Time Finance's closing price on 14 August and a 27.5% premium to its average share price over the previous six months, though the offer sits only just above the stock's 52-week high.
Time Finance has built a track record of 20 consecutive quarters of loan book growth, and reported revenue of £37.1m and pre-tax profit of £7.9m in its last full year, with its net loan book standing at around £218m by the end of June. Bentley Park said combining that business with Ultimate Finance would create a scaled, multi-product lender with a net loan book of nearly £650m, positioning the enlarged group to serve UK small and medium-sized businesses across working capital and asset finance.
Time Finance's board, advised by Cavendish, has unanimously backed the offer, describing the terms as fair and reasonable and highlighting the attractive premium, full liquidity for shareholders, and the freedom to pursue growth away from the constraints of public markets. Bentley Park has already lined up support from shareholders representing about 47% of the company, including Time Finance's own directors.
The deal still requires the usual shareholder and regulatory approvals before completion, and with the offer pitched only marginally above the 52-week high, some investors may question whether the board could have extracted a higher price given the strength of the underlying growth trajectory.
This report is based on Time Finance’s announcement and coverage by UK Investor Magazine. Company announcements can be tracked via London Stock Exchange RNS and Investegate, and the full results calendar is worth watching for the next update.
This article is for general information only and does not constitute investment advice or a recommendation to buy or sell any security. Photo: _cventr on Unsplash.
Small Cap News covers London’s junior market – AIM, small-cap and growth companies – with concise, sourced reporting on the results, deals and regulatory news that move share prices. We track the stories private investors actually need, from contract wins and drilling updates to fundraises and half-year figures, straight from the market’s own announcements.