Low-ball offer for PFI despite new regulation

New rules aimed at stamping out misleading 'low ball' share offers are being introduced from next month. Photo / Richard Robinson

Property For Industry Ltd is urging shareholders to ignore a low-ball offer from a company stalking its register.

The property investor said before Christmas that it had received a request for its share register from Zero Commission NZ.

Zero has now made an unsolicited offer to purchase the shares of PFI shareholders holding 2,000 shares or less for $1.12 per share.

The board does not support or endorse the offer, noting that PFI's shares have traded between $1.20 and $1.23 in the last 30 days.

Last year the government put regulations in place to help rein in unsolicited share offers and protect shareholders.

It regarded the offers as a predatory tactic that damaged confidence in capital markets.

Lowball offers are unsolicited approaches to shareholders offering to buy their shares or other securities. Offer letters put pressure on people to sell their shares quickly, often with little information and using unconventional business practices.

The new regulations require greater disclosure and introduce stronger rights and remedies for shareholders.

The person making the offer has to state the market price or a fair estimate of the value of the shares and specifying a minimum offer period and a cancellation period.