Argan is soaring in Paris; the agreed merger with the Belgian firm WDP is proving popular
They have put forward a proposal for a merger by way of a share exchange. The transaction will result in the creation of “a leading company in the logistics property sector in Europe”
(Il Sole 24 Ore Radiocor) - Argan soars on the Paris Stock Exchange following the announcement of its merger with the Belgian firm Wdp. Shares in the property company – France’s leading developer and operator of warehouses and logistics hubs – rose by more than 15 points, whilst Wdp fell by more than two points in Brussels. Argan and Wdp (Warehouses de Paw) announced on Thursday evening a proposed merger via a share swap.
The transaction will result in the creation of “a leading company in the logistics property sector in Europe, with a platform having a gross asset value of over 13 billion euros, across eight countries, generating more than €700 million in annual rental income and comprising nearly 13 million square metres of high-quality logistics property – characteristics that place it amongst the top three European logistics operators and make it the largest logistics property company in Western Europe”, a press release emphasises.
Under the agreement reached, the merger will take place via a share exchange, on the basis of three new Wdp shares for every Argan share. Furthermore, prior to the completion of the transaction, Argan plans to make an extraordinary distribution of 11 euros per share. These terms imply a valuation of €79.22 per Argan share, which represents a premium of 21 per cent over the latest closing share price, taking into account the special distribution. The transaction has received the unanimous support of the boards of directors and supervisory boards of both companies and their respective major shareholders.
The founding Le Lan family and Crédit Agricole Assurances, through its subsidiary Predica, which together hold approximately 52 per cent of Argan’s voting rights, together with the founding De Pauw family, which holds 19 per cent of Wdp’s voting rights, have already expressed their support for the merger. Shareholders’ meetings to vote on the transaction are expected to take place this coming November, and the merger is expected to be completed in the first quarter of 2027. Wdp, which is already listed on Euronext Brussels and Euronext Amsterdam, plans to obtain an additional listing on Euronext Paris, whilst, if the merger is completed, Argan’s shares will be delisted from the Paris Stock Exchange.
The De Pauw, Le Lan and Predica families will hold approximately 14 per cent, 9 per cent and 4 per cent respectively of the new entity’s share capital following the completion of the merger, whilst the free float is expected to account for approximately 73 per cent of the shares. Beyond the scale effects, the merger between Argan and Wdp is based on “strong strategic complementarity”.
