The IPH Ltd (ASX: IPH) share price is on watch today after the company provided an update on its Xenith IP Group Ltd (ASX: XIP) acquisition.
What did IPH announce this morning?
IPH advised that the Federal Court of Australia has made orders approving the Scheme of Arrangement under which IPH will acquire all of the shares in the capital of Xenith not already held by IPH.
The company said that the Federal Court orders were lodged with the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) today, with the Scheme of Arrangement now legally effective.
The record date for the scheme is 8 August 2019, while the implementation date is one week later on 15 August 2019.
What's happening with the Xenith merger?
IPH had its $192 million takeover offer for rival and second-largest intellectual property law firm Xenith accepted in mid-April after acquiring a 20% strategic stake in the business.
IPH's revised proposal provided Xenith shareholders with $1.28 cash and 0.1261 IPH shares per Xenith share for a total of $2.15 per Xenith share based on IPH's 5 April 2019 closing price of $6.90 per share.
IPH is also providing a "Mix and Match" facility whereby Xenith shareholders may elect to receive 'Maximum Scrip Consideration' (i.e. 100% share-based) or 'Maximum Cash Consideration' (i.e. 100% cash) per Xenith share, subject to scale-back.
The successful takeover move came after months of back-and-forth with Xenith and its own merger target, QANTM Intellectual Property Ltd (ASX: QIP), with Xenith consistently rebuffing IPH's proposal.
How has the IPH share price performed in 2019?
At the time of writing, the IPH share price was down nearly 2% in early trade to $8.18 per share, after having hit a new 52-week high of $8.42 just prior to market close yesterday.
The IPH share price has surged higher in 2019 and is up more than 50% for the year as regulatory approval of the Xenith merger makes the company set to control a vast share – around 30% – of Australia's intellectual property law sector.
