MacarthurCook says AMP bid exceptionally low

By Eriko Amaha

SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Australian property manager Macarthurcook Ltd (MCK.AX) said on Tuesday that a takeover bid by AMP Capital Investors was "exceptionally low", but added it would be up to shareholders to accept if AMP makes another offer.

AMP Capital offered to acquire MacarthurCook this month for A$1.35 per share, valuing the manager of real estate investment trusts (REITs) such as MacarthurCook Industrial REIT (MCRT.SI) at about A$36 million.

Macarthurcook has since said this indicative offer was not satisfactory and no further talks would be held. Its share price rose 10.5 percent on Tuesday to A$1.05, well below AMP's bid.

"(The offer was) exceptionally low," said Craig Dunstan, MacarthurCook's managing director at the Reuters Global Real Estate Summit in Singapore.

The price was a 69 percent premium to its pre-bid closing price of 80 cents per share on June 6, but Dunstan said share prices do not reflect the true value of his company.

"The point of comparison is what's the offer versus what's the value of the business, and that's more relevant than what's the offer versus what the share price was a week ago," he said.

AMP's Chief Investment Officer Andrew Bird said at the Reuters Global Real Estate Summit that his company was considering its next step and would make an announcement this week.

Asia's one-hot markets for REITs have cooled over the past year as share prices were hammered by fears over the global credit crisis. Analysts expect a spate of takeovers in the industry as weaker players find it increasingly tough to raise money and refinance loans, hampering their ability to expand.

Since its inception in 2003, MacarthurCook has managed to expand its platform quickly and globally, having listed and delisted property vehicles in markets like Australia, the United States and Singapore.

The business model has become a coveted asset for some players such as AMP, the investment unit of Australia's top pension fund manager AMP Ltd (AMP.AX), which hopes to expand its non-Australian portfolio.

"We were able to put together a very impressive platform in terms of investing real estate and real estate securities internationally," he said. "They see the value in what we created and our job is to make sure our investors get paid appropriately for that."

Dunstan said he did not see synergies in combining the two companies, but added shareholders were the ones to make the call.

"We have something they don't. They have nothing that I want," he said. "The management don't have a say. It's up to shareholders. They own the company."

In the mean time, Dunstan said his company is considering raising property funds in the next 18 months and is also considering entering the Chinese and Indian markets for the first time to pick up industrial assets.

"We are looking at a couple of property fund concepts," he said without giving more details.