Crescent quits Abano with tidy $4m profit

Australian private equity company Crescent Capital has sold its cornerstone stake in Abano Healthcare for a healthy profit.

Abano yesterday said Crescent had sold 4,534,998 shares - its entire 19.5 per cent stake.

Abano last week received shareholder approval for the sale of its NZ audiology division to National Hearing Care, a company associated with Crescent, for $157.8 million.

Abano chairwoman Alison Paterson said the shares had been sold through brokers Forsyth Barr and Craigs Investment Partners to a number of parties at a discount of 10.25 per cent to the average price over the last month.

That would value the sale at around $27.9 million or $6.15 per share and a profit of over $4 million.

Crescent first began buying up shares in the audiology and dental business at the end of 2007 as part of its takeover bid.

It paid an average of $5.15 for an 8.7 per cent stake in early 2008 to help bring its holding up to 19.9 per cent and promised sellers to top them up if its takeover bid at $5.20 was successful.

But the takeover failed and Crescent was left with the major stake with no chance of gaining control.

Paterson said the sale of the shares had come as no surprise to the board of Abano.

Paterson said it was interested to know who Abano's new shareholders would be but she expected them to be supportive of the board.

Crescent is the second investor to make money from a failed takeover of Abano.

The Stewart family's investment company Masthead Portfolios made $17 million on selling its 19.9 per cent share in Abano to Healthcare Industries in January last year.

Masthead bought in at $1.55 a share and sold out at $5.20 after its takeover offer at $5 per share lapsed.

Abano shares closed down 35c at $6.50 yesterday.