KEY POINTS:
United States-based Fortune 500 company Henry Schein has passed the 90 per cent threshold in its offer for New Zealand dental software company Software of Excellence International Ltd.
Earlier this month Henry Schein increased its offer price to $2.90 a share from $2.70 and made it clear it wanted the lot.
The offer was conditional on getting to 90 per cent, the level at which remaining shares can be compulsorily acquired and the company delisted.
Henry Schein said today it had received acceptances equal to about 91.9 per cent and had begun the process to compulsorily acquire the remaining shares.
Excluding transaction costs, the total purchase price was $82 million.
Henry Schein said it expected the transaction to be neutral to its 2007 earnings and slightly accretive to 2008 earnings.
"Software of Excellence has been delivering innovative solutions to dental professionals since 1988," said Stanley Bergman, chairman and chief executive officer of Henry Schein.
"We look forward to joining Team Schein, an established leader in providing innovative solutions to the dental community," said Brian Weatherly," chief executive officer of Software of Excellence.
Software of Excellence supplies practice management systems to both private and public health dentists in the United Kingdom, and is also the largest supplier of dental software in Australia and New Zealand.
Henry Schein employs nearly 12,000 people and has operations in 19 countries.
- NZPA
