KEY POINTS:
The second takeover bid for Abano Healthcare in less than six months looks set to fail as Friday's deadline looms with little movement in the number of shareholders accepting Crescent Capital's $5.20 offer.
Yesterday Crescent's acceptances stood at 3.372 per cent _ a long way short of its 50.1 per cent target and market commentators said the company's falling share price indicated the bid was unlikely to be successful.
Abano shares hit $4.95 last Monday when the firm's board announced a strong profit forecast for both 2008 and 2009 but over the past week they have fallen 45c as Crescent and Abano's board have put forward their arguments.
Last week Crescent sent a letter to investors, claiming Abano's board was not acting responsibly in the advice it was giving by ignoring the market conditions in its earnings advice.
But Abano has rejected the claims, with a broker report followed by a memo to advisers yesterday giving a point by point breakdown on its case for continuing to recommend shareholders do not accept the offer.
"The question we believe shareholders should be asking themselves is: why is Crescent so desperately trying to acquire the company if their view of its prospects is so derisory. After all, isn't the normal activity of private equity companies to buy companies whose prospects are undervalued and then increase the debt gearing?," the firm said in its memo.
Crescent Capital CEO Michael Alscher said it stood by its earlier statements but admitted there was little it could do to change the outcome at this stage.
"There is not much we can do from here. We have got to see it through. We can't vary the offer. It's really up to shareholders to decide now.
"Based on the information we have to hand we think the offer is pretty compelling."
Alscher indicated the group would be unlikely to try to sell its 19.9 per cent stake immediately.
