Response by Goodman is delayed

Press, 27 January 1986, Page 12

Response by Goodman is delayed

By

SIMON LOUISSON,

in Wellington

The Fielder Gillespie Davis take-over offer has been mailed to Goodman Group shareholders, but the Goodman response has been delayed. It is understood the formal Goodman response would have been along the lines of its January 16 press release which recommended acceptance. However, legal questions have been raised about the inclusion of profit forecasts. Australian law prohibits companies from forecasting profit and the Goodman press release, headed “for New Zealand release only,” included a profit prediction for the combined Fielder-Good-man-Allied group in the vicinity of SI3SM. Despite the release being for New Zealand media, Allied Mills has suggested that the release was also intended for Australian ears and will influence Allied shareholders regarding the Fielder bid and the Euling counterbid. In order to avoid falling foul of Australian Securi-

ties Commission authorities, Goodman is understood to be taking legal advice before posting any formal recommendations to shareholders. The company secretary, Mr Barney Sundstrum, could not be contacted and other Goodman officials were not able to comment. The Fielder offer to Goodman shareholders values Goodman shares at $4.31, based on prices of sAust2.6s for Fielder shares and an exchange rate of $1.30. “This is higher than the price in the months before the merger proposal was announced,” the Fielder chairman, Mr C. A. Martin, says. The rationale behind the offer is stated as achieving substantial production economies in industries needing rationalisation and creating a group large enough to compete on world markets on an equal footing with the major food companies of Europe and North America.