Stamford’s Curaleaf Holdings is pursuing a hostile takeover of a Canada-based cannabis company, taking its acquisition proposal directly to shareholders after the target company’s board declined to engage in negotiations.
Curaleaf, a consumer cannabis products company with retail operations and cultivation and processing facilities in the U.S. and internationally, said Tuesday it intends to acquire Aurora Cannabis for $4 per share, consisting of 0.3463 Curaleaf shares and 75 cents in cash. The company said the proposal represents a 45% premium to Aurora’s 30-day average share price.
Curaleaf has not formally launched the takeover bid, and said there is no guarantee the offer will ultimately be made.
The company said it initially approached Aurora privately in June and followed up in July after Aurora declined to engage. Curaleaf Chairman and CEO Boris Jordan said the company is now seeking to take the proposal directly to Aurora shareholders.
Aurora Cannabis trades on the Nasdaq and Toronto Stock Exchange.
If completed, the combination would create a cannabis company operating in 17 countries with more than $1.5 billion in trailing 12-month revenue and a market capitalization approaching $3 billion, according to Curaleaf.
Curaleaf, which estimates the deal could generate at least $40 million in annual cost savings, said the deal would expand its international operations by adding Aurora’s cannabis cultivation and manufacturing capacity and its medical cannabis business, particularly in Europe and Canada.
