An investor group looking to purchase the parent company of PSA has upped its offer. The group, led by avid collector and entrepreneur Nat Turner and Cohen Private Ventures, announced Wednesday that they’ve entered into an agreement to purchase all outstanding shares of Collectors Universe for $92 per share. That represents a sizeable increase from the $75.25 agreement the two sides had settled on in late November. The deal had received some pushback from at least one large group of shareholders, who felt the company was worth more.
The new offer values Collectors Universe at $853 million. The original deal had been for $700 million. The investor group is calling the new package its “best and final” offer.
The Collectors Universe Board of Directors unanimously approved the revised agreement.
Shares of Collectors Universe have risen from a 52-week low of $13.26 per share to over $91 per share as of Wednesday afternoon. As late as May 22, the company’s stock price stood at just over $20. That means, if you bought 100 shares in the company last spring for a little over $2,000, that same investment would return $9,200 when the deal goes through.
“I haven’t heard of other bidders which is usually the case when an original offer is bumped higher, but judging by the financials released this morning, the company appears to be firing on all cylinders,” former Wall Street executive, author and angel investor Paul Rubillo told SC Daily. “The new higher offer certainly reflects it and I think shareholders will be quite excited by the news. This is great news for the hobby in terms of deal dollars flowing into a long-established ‘picks and shovels’ industry leader.
The exploding interest in grading and authentication of sports cards has been a financial windfall for Collectors Universe, but the unprecedented demand has resulted in a large backlog of submissions that often force collectors to wait many months for their items to be processed, graded and returned.
Turner is a 34-year-old tech entrepreneur and angel investor who hopes to spearhead changes that will make the company more efficient. An avid collector of high-end basketball cards, he is expected to take on an active role in directing the company’s future.
“We are pleased to have reached an agreement that delivers material incremental value for Collectors Universe shareholders,” Turner stated. “We look forward to applying our collective experience scaling technology businesses and extensive knowledge of the collectibles space to expand the Company’s operational capacity and technological capabilities.”
A.J. “Bert” Moyer, Chairman of the Collectors Universe Board of Directors, said, “This enhanced, ‘best and final’ offer recognizes the strong momentum in our business and provides certainty of value in an uncertain economic environment. While the Board has a high degree of confidence in management’s plan, it also believes that there is a significant risk that the Company’s recent growth rate will decline over time. For these reasons, the Board continues to believe that this transaction and the certainty it provides is in the best interest of shareholders.”
Collectors Universe shareholders who have already effectively accepted the offer by tendering their shares are not required to take further action in order to receive the increased offer price.
The offer is good until February 3. It’ll now be up to shareholders to approve the deal.
