Midwest Airlines agrees to private buyout
MILWAUKEE -- Midwest said TPG will pay $17 per share, which values the deal at $450 million based on Midwest's 26.6 million shares outstanding.
The announcement ends months of back-and-forth battling over Orlando-based AirTran's attempted hostile takeover of Milwaukee-based Midwest.
AirTran had raised its offer several times only to be spurned by Midwest's board.
The latest upgrade came earlier in the week, after Midwest's board decided to go with a $16-per-share all-cash deal from TPG Capital, which includes Northwest Airlines Corp. as a passive partner. The parties expected to formalize the agreement Wednesday.
Instead, the board delayed action to consider a new cash-and-stock offer that AirTran made after the market closed Tuesday. The board met Thursday afternoon and announced it voted unanimously for TPG's sweetened offer.
AirTran had been fighting for two years to take over Midwest. Its offer was worth $16.25 a share in cash and stock, or about $445 million, when it was made.
The deal offered Midwest shareholders $10 in cash and 0.6056 of a share of AirTran stock for each Midwest share, with its value depending on the price of AirTran shares. AirTran shares rose 14 cents, or 1.4%, to close at $9.97 Thursday. That made the offer worth about $16.04 a share, or $439 million.
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