A group of disaffected Wool Equities shareholders plans to run newspaper ads around the country today urging farmers and other investors not to sell to a new offer.
The offer from BioPacific Ventures - indirectly owned by Direct Capital private equity and state-owned AgResearch - has come throughKarios Holdings, which involves former Wool Equities CEO Mark O'Grady.
Karios is seeking up to 8 per cent more of wool research company Wool Equities at 90c a share, which matches yesterday's close of 90c on the NZAX.
Wool Equities has a strong wool grower shareholder base. Growers got shares as part of the carve-up of former Wool Board reserves in 2003.
A spokesman for the disaffected group, John Shirtcliff, said it wanted shareholders to hold on to their stock and support calls for a special meeting.
Shirtcliff's group needs the support of 5 per cent of shareholders so it can hold the meeting and try to replace the board.
The group has previously asked the NZX to look into share trading by O'Grady and Wool Equities chairman Richard Bentley, and also whether the company has complied with disclosure rules.
Meanwhile, a second group of farmer shareholders has now asked a senior forensic accountant to investigate Wool Equities.
David Petterson, of Forensic Accounting Services, said he was having a close look at the company's records to help the shareholders decide whether to take up the new offer.
The Wool Equities board told the NZX last week that it believes it is for the market to determine the merits of the offer. A report by Shirtcliff has highlighted nearly $300 million of Wool Board tax losses in the Wool Equities-owned Wool Board Disestablishment Company (Disco) as at June last year. He said yesterday that shareholders needed guidance on whether these losses affected the value of their shares.
Shirtcliff also wanted more information about AgResearch being involved with both Karios and the purchase of Canesis from Wool Equities and the Wool Research Organisation of NZ Trust.
Wool Equities has said it has complied with all legal and NZX listing rules. A company director said he understood "insider trading" allegations had been referred by NZX to the Securities Commission.
