PartnerRe Ltd. said Wednesday that it is prepared to engage in
takeover talks with Exor SpA, after rejecting the Italian holding
company's previous offer.
Last week, Exor sweetened its all-cash offer for the reinsurer
by 5.8%, in a $6.8 billion bid that would break up PartnerRe's plan
to merge with Axis Capital Holding Ltd.
Exor, which owns a controlling stake in Fiat Chrysler
Automobiles, is now offering $137.50 a share compared with a
previous bid of $130 a share.
PartnerRe said Wednesday that while it still believes it is
worth "materially more than Exor has offered," it has requested a
waiver from merger partner Axis that will allow Exor to conduct due
diligence.
In rejecting Exor's previous bid, PartnerRe's board reiterated
its plan to merge with Axis Capital Holding. That tie-up, first
announced in January, appeared set to sail to completion without
any serious obstacles until Exor made its initial surprise bid in
mid-April.
While its initial approach was friendly, Exor has become
increasingly hostile and said it has filed documents with the
Securities and Exchange Commission that would allow the Italian
company to appeal directly to PartnerRe shareholders to reject the
board's planned deal with Axis.
Exor has said it has already invested $572 million in PartnerRe
and is the Bermuda-based company's largest shareholder with a 9.3%
stake.
Write to Chelsey Dulaney at Chelsey.Dulaney@wsj.com
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