ADQ is launching an Aramex takeover bid: Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth fund ADQ intends to submit an offer to acquire the remaining shares in Dubai-based logistics company Aramex, according to a DFM disclosure (pdf). The acquisition would value Aramex at AED 4.39 bn, according to our calculations.

The details: Through its subsidiary Q Logistics Holding, ADQ has offered to buy all the Aramex shares that aren’t owned by AD Ports, which has a 22.69% stake in the freight services firm. The cash offer will be placed at AED 3 per share, a premium of around 30% to Aramex’s closing price on Friday of AED 2.31 a piece. Shares in Aramex closed up 14.7% yesterday, settling at AED 2.65.

What’s in it for ADQ? Aramex “has potential to play a central role” in helping ADQ’s broader vision for the wider UAE economy, Q Logistics said. On the other hand, a decline in its financial performance since 2019 and the absence of dividends in 2023 point to a need for a “strategic and operational transformation… to unlock the company’s full potential,” Q Holdings said. This transformation is expected to be “complex, capital intensive and to take time,” it added.

ADVISORS- Rothschild is acting as financial adviser for Q Logistics, while Emirates NBD capital is the lead manager for this project.

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