Broker Mortgage Choice Ltd said on Monday it entered an initial agreement to be acquired by property advertiser REA Group Ltd for A$243.75 million ($186.15 million).
The offer price of A$1.95 per share in cash represents a 66% premium to Mortgage’s last close price of A$1.18 on March 26.
In a separate statement, REA Group said the acquisition provides a "compelling opportunity to establish a leading mortgage broking business with increased scale", adding that the acquisition would be immediately accretive to its earnings per share.
Mortgage Choice said all of its directors recommend shareholders vote in favour of the deal.
($1 = 1.3094 Australian dollars)
(Reporting by Soumyajit Saha in Bengaluru; Editing by Peter Cooney and Kim Coghill)
