Unilever begins tender offer for 6%, 7% cumulative preference shares

By Angela McDaniels

Tacoma, Wash., Sept. 19 - Unilever NV is holding a tender offer for its 6% cumulative preference shares and 7% cumulative preference shares, according to a CB filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Also eligible for the tender offer are preferreds held in the form of subshares or depositary shares.

The nominal amount of each security and the purchase prices being offered are noted in the table below.

The tender offer will end at 11:40 a.m. ET on Oct. 18.

The next dividend payment date for the preferreds is Oct. 3. The dividend amount is €27.23 per 6% preferred and €31.76 per 7% preferred. The ex-dividend date is Sept. 12, and the dividend record date is Sept. 14.

The company issued the preferreds between 1927 and 1964. Unilever said that due to their high nominal value, the economic value and the votes they represent are not in balance. The preferreds represent an economic interest of less than 0.5% in the company and nearly 30% of the voting rights.

The aim of the tender offer is to improve the company's corporate governance, simplify its capital structure and provide liquidity to the preferred holders, according to the SEC filing.

The company plans to hold any preferreds it acquires under the offer and to cancel them in due course. It plans to exchange any 7% depositary receipts it acquires for the underlying 7% preferreds.

The principal tender agent is Royal Bank of Scotland NV (contact Richard van Etten or Jerry Chiu at +31 20 464 3707 or corporate.actions@rbs.com). The administrative tender agent is ANT Trust & Corporate Services NV (contact Douglas Tessers at +31 20 522 2510 or registers@ant-trust.nl).

Unilever is a consumer products company based in Rotterdam, the Netherlands.

Unilever tender offer

Security Nominal amount Offer price

6% cumulative preference shares €428.57 €806.00

Subshares of 6% cumulative preference shares €42.86 €80.60

7% cumulative preference shares €428.57 €940.00

Subshares of 7% cumulative preference shares €42.86 €94.00

Depositary receipts for 7% cumulative preference subshares €42.86 €94.00

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