Intueri Education Group shares fell 52 per cent to 1 cent, valuing the company at $1 million after it said the level of bids for its remaining colleges mean it wouldn't have a sustainable business after repaying debt and there'd be nothing to return to shareholders.
The stock has fallen from $2.35 in Intueri's initial public offering in 2014, when it was taken public by Australia-based Arowana International. The IPO delivered $102m to Arowana for selling its stake down to 24.9 per cent and paid the $60m cost of acquiring the now-defunct Quantum Education Group.
Intueri hired High St Capital Partners for advice on options for the New Zealand operations including the sale of assets after being forced to close its Australian institutions when they failed to gain renewed registrations across the Tasman. Those remaining assets are now being liquidated. Today it said indicative offers for its remaining New Zealand colleges would not generate enough funds to repay all of $70.7m in debt with ANZ Bank New Zealand.
As a result, the company would have "insufficient residual assets to operate a sustainable business or make any return to shareholders" if a sale eventuates, it said in a statement.
The company said it retains the support of its bank under a standstill agreement reached after it breached a lending covenant. The standstill is to allow Intueri to complete a strategic review. "Intueri's New Zealand businesses continue to be able to meet obligations currently being incurred," the company said in a statement.
In February, Intueri said it had conditionally agreed to sell the NZ School of Outdoor Studies, which trades as the NZ School of Commercial Diver Training and is the only such school in New Zealand, with settlement expected by the end of March. However, today it said the sale hasn't been finalised despite settlement being extended to the end of April "and Intueri is now exploring options with other parties to divest this college. In the meantime, the Dive School will maintain normal operations under Intueri management."
