Transurban to raise $500m to move to full ownership of M5 toll road
Transurban will raise $500 million from investors to take full ownership of a section of the M5 toll road in Sydney.
The raising was unveiled on Wednesday morning as the company announced its full year profit after tax had fallen 63.7 per cent to $170 million.
Transurban said buying out the 35 per cent stake of the M5 West it does not already own for $468 million would enable "operational synergies" and for the road to be including in the Transurban tax consolidated group.
The M5 West will form part of the WestConnex M5 concession after 2026, and Transurban owns a quarter of WestConnex.
Transurban said the $500 million raising would be made through a fully underwritten pro-rata institutional offer at $14.70 a share, which is a 3.5 per cent discount to its closing price on Tuesday.
An additional purchase plan will also be available to raise up to $200 million, with shareholders able to buy up to $15,000 of new shares.
Transurban’s net profit fell from $468 million last year to $170 million, dragged down by stamp duty and other costs relating to its acquisition of WestConnex and consolidation of the M5 West; higher depreciation, amortisation and finance costs, and the cycling of tax boosts in the US in the prior year.
Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) fell 4.4 per cent to $1.6 billion. Excluding significant items relating to acquisitions, EBITDA increased 12 per cent to $2 billion.
The company declared a full year dividend of 59¢ per share, up from 56¢ last year, and gave guidance for a 62c dividend in 2020.
More to come