Oct 26 (Reuters) - Link Administration Holdings Ltd LNK.AX said on Monday private equity firms Carlyle Group CG.O and Pacific Equity Partners raised their takeover offer for the shareholder registry firm to A$2.87 billion ($2.04 billion), days after an earlier bid was turned down.
The new proposal also includes an option to acquire a stake in PEXA, an online property transaction firm that Link holds a stake in, and buy Link without it for A$3.80 per share.
Link dismissed the initial proposal last week saying it undervalued PEXA but said it would consider spinning-off the 44.2% stake it holds into a listed company.
The private equity duo in a separate statement said they will work with Link to list PEXA, in which Commonwealth Bank of Australia CBA.AX and Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) MS.N also hold interests.
The latest offer by Carlyle and Pacific Equity values the New South Wales-based company at A$5.40 per share, nearly 4% higher than the earlier bid, and at a 10.2% premium to Link's last close. proposal has received further backing from shareholders, with owners of more than 14.6% of Link supporting the consortium's revised bid.
($1 = 1.4041 Australian dollars)