Wheelock and Co takes property arm private for $889 mln

HONG KONG, April 28 (Reuters) - Wheelock and Co Ltd said late on Tuesday it plans to take its property arm, Wheelock Properties Ltd, private for HK$6.9 billion ($889 million).

The company said in a joint statement that it plans to offer HK$13 per share, or 143.9 percent premium over the previous close, for all outstanding shares it did not already own in Wheelock Properties.

The offer price represents a 3.35 percent discount to the net asset value of HK$13.45 per share as of the end of 2009.

Wheelock and Co, which currently holds about 74 percent of Wheelock Properties, said the proposal would simplify the group's structure and would enable Wheelock to eliminate the listing of a subsidiary, which has not raised any money from the public equity capital market for more than 35 years.

Trading in shares of Wheelock Properties will resume on Wednesday.

(US$1=HK$7.76)

(Reporting by Donny Kwok; Editing by Ken Wills)

(([e-mail]; [phone]; Reuters Messaging: [e-mail])) Keywords: WHEELOCK PRIVATISATION (If you have a query or comment on this story, send an email to [e-mail]) COPYRIGHT Copyright Thomson Reuters 2010. All rights reserved. The copying, republication or redistribution of Reuters News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Reuters.