US hedge fund Pentwater Capital said on Friday that it now has a 28.6 per cent equity stake in Irish life sciences investment company Malin Corp.
It follows on from the Pentwater, Malin’s largest shareholder for the past two years, converting a previously-held 9.4 per cent interest in Malin by way of financial derivatives into actual shares.
Pentwater’s overall interest has increased from 27.6 per cent so far this year to 28.6 per cent as a result of Malin buying back some of its shares and cancelling them.
Malin, which recently sold its 65 per cent stake in injectable drugs company Altan for €68 million, is currently planning to use most of its €118 million of cash to carry out a major share buyback.
If Pentwater does not sell into the planned share repurchase, its stake will move above the 29.9 per cent level that would ordinarily trigger a mandatory takeover offer. However, it could seek a waiver from the Irish Takeover Panel from having to follow through with a bid.
