A big shareholder of Pacific Enterprise Bancorp has voiced his opposition
to the Irvine, Calif., company’s pending sale to BayCom in Walnut Creek, Calif.
The $2.1 billion-asset BayCom agreed
in September to buy the $647 million-asset Pacific Enterprise for $53.1
million in stock. The deal, which is expected to close in the first quarter,
priced Pacific Enterprise at 87% of its tangible book value.
Shaul Kopelowitz, who holds about 9.9% of Pacific Enterprise’s
stock, said in an open letter to other shareholders that he believes the
pending sale to be “an ill-conceived and strategically flawed merger agreement.”
Kopelowitz said he has also applied with the Federal Reserve to buy more
Pacific Enterprise shares.
“It appears that no non-distressed California bank since the
Great Recession has sold for less than book value,” Kopelowitz claimed in his
letter. “In fact, the average premium for a regional bank merger or acquisition
over the last five years is 173.25% of tangible book value.”
Kopelwitz said he is willing to meet with Pacific Enterprise’s
board to discuss “value-enhancing alternatives once this deal is hopefully
voted down.”
No comments:
Post a Comment