By Joy Baba-Yesufu
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has approved an extension of the Mandatory Takeover Offer (MTO) by N Seven Nigeria Limited to minority shareholders of Guinness Nigeria Plc. The offer will now close on Friday, April 18, 2025.
N Seven Nigeria, now the majority stakeholder in Guinness Nigeria with a 58.02% equity stake, is offering to acquire up to 481,362,887 ordinary shares—representing 21.98% of the company’s issued share capital—at N81.60 per share. This offer values the transaction at over N39 billion.
The MTO follows N Seven’s recent acquisition of 1.3 billion ordinary shares from Atalantaf Limited and Guinness Overseas Limited, making it the controlling shareholder in the brewing giant.
Despite the premium offer, uptake has been slow, with shares trading at N80 as of April 4. Analysts at United Capital suggest that while the offer carries little execution risk, delays in settlement may be a concern. They also hinted at the possibility of a future delisting from the Nigerian Exchange post-MTO.
“There’s limited upside left in the stock. The MTO provides a safer exit for minority investors,” the firm stated in a March 6 note.
As of now, Guinness Nigeria has not announced any plans to delist.
