HNA’s $1.4b Gategroup offer short in initial Count

HNA Group Co.’s plan to acquire the world’s second-biggest airline caterer in a 1.4b-franc ($1.4b) deal fell short of a target the Chinese conglomerate was seeking to garner in a preliminary count. Only 61.3% of Gategroup Holding AG’s shareholders tendered their stock in the initial acceptance period that ended July 1, HNA said Monday. In April, HNA said the deal for the Kloten, Switzerland-based company required a 67% buy-in. The tally was preliminary and the final count will be published Thursday, HNA said. The airlines-to-supermarkets conglomerate, based in the island of Hainan and controlled by Chinese billionaire Chen Feng, declined to comment further. Inflight caterers are struggling with a tougher operating environment as consolidation in Europe and the US boosts carriers’ bargaining power, and a switch to low-cost flights means fewer passengers take meals. The final results of the offer are due to be released Thursday. If HNA fails to secure the 67% sought, it can walk away from the deal or drop the condition and extend the offer period through July 21, said Dagmara Robinson, a spokeswoman for Gategroup, citing the deal’s prospectus. “We believe the offering will go through,” said Pascal Furger, an analyst at Bank Vontobel AG in Zurich. HNA intended to delist Gategroup upon completion of the public tender offer, according to its April statement. The Swiss company’s directors unanimously supported the offer, according to that statement.<br/>