The board of Spectris PLC (LSE:SXS) has backed an improved £4.1 billion cash offer from KKR, which trumped a £3.8 billion deal agreed last week with another US private equity firm, Advent International.
Under the terms of the acquisition, Spectris shareholders will receive £40 per share, including £39.72 of cash from KKR's bidco and a 28p interim dividend payable by Spectris.
The offer price represents a significant premium of around 6.3% to the previously announced Advent offer and approximately 96% to the share price before bid interest was first revealed.
Mark Williamson, chairman of Spectris, said the board is "pleased to recommend KKR's cash offer", switching their preference after KKR increased its offer price.
Last Monday, 23 June, the Spectric board had recommended Advent's £37.63 cash offer, which also included the 28p interim dividend.
But, shortly after, KKR said it had also proposed an offer earlier in June, had been "engaging constructively" with the board and was in the advanced stages of due diligence and arranging financing commitments in preparation for a potential bid.
Williamson said in today's statement that the KKR offer "reflects the excellent work of the Spectris management team in recent years to transform Spectris into a focused, high quality, premium precision measurement business that is well positioned for the future.
"While we remain confident in the opportunities for the business, KKR's offer provides attractive and immediate cash value for shareholders and a compelling vision for the future of the group that the board believes will be to the benefit of our stakeholders."
Joshua Weisenbeck, a KKR partner, said: "Spectris is an impressive industrial technology business serving attractive end-markets such as life sciences, industrial automation, aerospace & defence, academia, and more... We have a long track record of investing in great UK companies and developing industrial technology businesses globally. We aim to build on these values, while investing to continue the transformation of Spectris as a global leader."