KARACHI, April 28: Toyota Motor Corporation of Japan announced its decision to acquire an additional 9.83 million shares in Pakistan’s Indus Motor Company by taking over stock from overseas investors and general public at the purchase price of Rs370 per share.

That would raise the Japanese giant car maker’s stake in Indus Motor Company from 25 to 37.5 per cent.

In an announcement at the stock exchanges, Toyota Corporation and its affiliate Toyota Tsushu Corporation said they currently held 9.825 million shares each in Indus Motor, which together constituted 25 per cent of the company’s paid-up capital. Toyota stated that on April 25, they had entered into an agreement with “Overseas Pakistan Investors AG Limited” for acquisition of 3.93 million of their stock, representing five per cent of the issued and paid-up capital of the company.

Besides, Toyota Corporation expressed its intention also to buy-back a larger portion of 7.5 per cent equity, constituting 5.895 million shares from the public shareholders through a public offer at the same purchase price offered to the Overseas Investors — i.e. Rs370 per share.

The public offer would not include the stock held by companies and individuals who represent members of the House of Habib (HoH).

The Toyota announcement was greeted at the Karachi Stock Exchange on Monday with the price of the Indus Motor share quickly hitting the ‘upper circuit’, representing increase of Rs16.59 per share, which carried the stock price to Rs348.39, with a volume close to a million shares.

Toyota stated that the public shareholders would be allocated shares through the public offer and if the number of shares tendered in acceptance of the public offer would exceed 5.895 million shares, the “acquirer” (Toyota Corporation) would, in consultation with the manager to the public offer, accept the offers on a proportional basis.

That would be following the consent of manager to the public offer to accept the offers on a proportional basis provided that the minimum number of shares acquired from a single shareholder would be a market lot (500 shares) or, if the holding of a shareholder was less than a marketable lot, the entire shareholding of that shareholder.

After the closing and settlement of the public offer (which was subject to requisite regulatory approvals), the “acquirer” would seek to increase the number of members on the Indus Motor Company’s Board from seven at present to nine members, the Toyota Corporation said, but clarified that the “acquirer” would not take management control of Indus Motor, which would effectively remain with the House of Habib, after the close of the offer. “It is envisaged that board members will be split 5:4 between HoH and the acquirer/TTC collectively,” the announcement stated.

The company said it was making the announcement as required by the listed companies (substantial acquisition of voting shares and takeovers) Ordinance, 2002.