Peter Ward (MOQ)
Publicly listed MOQ Digital has confirmed it has received a superior bid by an unnamed third party, offering $0.066 cash per share, valuing the business at about $20.5 million.
This is a 10 per cent premium on the cash offer that Atturra put on the table last week. Atturra has been given until 11 August to match the offer or provide more favourable terms.
Atturra put in a bid to fully acquire MOQ for $15 million on 30 June in a move that could create "one of Australia’s largest IT services businesses".
The IT consultancy, formerly known as FTS Group, offered to buy 100 per cent of MOQ’s shares for $0.05 cents in cash per MOQ share as part of a Scheme of Arrangement.
Atturra made a revised offer on 5 August, increasing it by 20 per cent to $0.06, which pushed the deal price to $18.6 million.
The acquisition attempt comes as MOQ informed shareholders of its ongoing operational challenges and trading losses.
In particular, MOQ cited its unprofitable professional services contracts, although it claimed to have made “significant progress” on fixed fee arrangements.
In December 2021, MOQ said it would conduct a review of its professional services business and operations following a $3.5 million write-off and provide for contract cost overruns.
“We are confident that this merger will have a positive impact for both our existing and future customers by leveraging the combined group’s significant experience, product knowledge, IT expertise and resources,” MOQ non-executive chairman David Shein said at the time.
“The Atturra transaction will provide significant career opportunities for our staff and we look forward to the journey ahead.”
