The majority owner of Richfield specialty insurer National Interstate Corp. is making another pitch to buy out the entire company for an estimated $293 million.
American Financial Group Inc. says it will pay $30 a share to buy out all the shares of National Interstate it does not own through its wholly owned subsidiary, Great American Insurance Co. Cincinnati-based AFG owns about 51 percent of National Interstate.
“Our proposal represents an attractive opportunity for National Interstate’s shareholders to receive a significant premium to National Interstate’s current and recent share prices,” Carl H. Lindner III and S. Craig Lindner, co-chief executive officers of AFG, said in a news release. “We would be making an additional investment in a business we know well, while at the same time simplifying the ownership structure.”
Shares of National Interstate closed at $29.98 Wednesday. Shares are up 12.3 percent since Jan. 1 and are up 11.3 percent from a year ago.
AFG withdrew its previous offer in March 2014 after intense opposition from other large shareholders as well as an unfavorable court ruling.
Current or former executive officers of GAIC or AFG make up five of the 11 members of National Interstate’s board.
AFG said it will not move forward with the purchase unless it is approved by a special committee.
None of the five National Interstate directors who are affiliated with AFG will participate in the consideration of the AFG proposal by National Interstate, the special committee or the special committee’s advisers, the company said in a news release.
The transaction will be subject to a nonwaivable condition requiring approval of a majority of the shares of National Interstate not owned by AFG or its affiliates, AFG said.
Jim Mackinnon can be reached at 330-996-3544 or jmackinnon@thebeaconjournal.com. Follow him @JimMackinnonABJ on Twitter or www.facebook.com/JimMackinnonABJ. His stories can be found at www.ohio.com/writers/jim-mackinnon.