Wall Street private equity firm Warburg Pincus, a key investor in Waterbury regional banking giant Webster Financial Corp., is buying Arizona ambulance and fire protection services provider Rural/Metro Corp. for about $438.2 million, The Associated Press reports.
Rural/Metro stockholders will receive $17.25 per share in cash, which is a 37 percent premium over the company’s Friday closing stock price of $12.55.
Rural/Metro, of Scottsdale, Ariz., has approximately 25.4 million outstanding shares, according to Thomson Reuters.
Its stock jumped $4.66, or 37 percent, to $17.21 in premarket trading.
Rural/Metro’s board unanimously approved the deal, which will take the company private.
The acquisition, which still needs shareholder approval, is expected to close by the end of June.
Warburg also owns a stake in New Haven antibiotic developer Rib-X Pharmaceuticals.
