Superior stock climbs on takeover bid
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Shares of Superior Well Services soared Monday after Nabors Industries made a $22.12 per share offer for the Indiana, Pa. well services company.
Nabors, a Bermuda-based oil and natural gas drilling contractor, cited Superior Well's expertise in fracking -- using high pressure water to release natural gas in shale -- and its presence in the burgeoning Marcellus Shale region as reasons for the acquisition.
The tender offer represents a 24 percent premium over the average closing price of Superior Well's stock over the last 30 days. Including the assumption of debt and preferred stock, the offer values Superior Well at $900 million.
Superior Well shares closed Monday at $22.08, up $3.85. Superior Well shares went public in 2006 at $25.50.
Nabors' shares also rose, closing at $18.32, up 34 cents.
Owners of about 34 percent of Superior Well's share have agreed to tender their shares. Nabors expects to complete the acquisition by the end of the third quarter.
Nabors Chairman and CEO Gene Isenberg said he expects Superior Well will contribute to the combined company's profits next year.
"Our major motivator was the opportunity to leverage this well-respected franchise into a global force utilizing our extensive international footprint and resources," he said. "They have a leading position in Marcellus, where we're expanding."
Mr. Isenberg said Superior Well's second-quarter profits, disclosed Monday, will cause analysts to increase their estimates of what the company can contribute to Nabors' bottom line.
Superior Well reported net income after the payment of preferred dividends of $5.3 million, or 18 cents per diluted share. Revenue nearly doubled to $176 million. In the year-ago quarter, the company lost $38.7 million, or $1.66 per diluted share, after the payment of preferred dividends on revenue of $90.5 million.
Superior Well Chairman and CEO David Wallace said Nabors' offer represents "an immediate and significant premium for our shareholders."
"Our companies will be stronger together than alone," Mr. Wallace told analysts in a conference call.
First Published August 10, 2010 12:00 am
