Covestro likely to recommend ADNOC takeover offer, trims profit target

Covestro said its management board is likely to recommend Abu Dhabi National Oil Company’s (ADNOC) $16.3bn takeover offer to shareholders in the next few weeks, as the German chemicals maker cuts its 2024 profit target again.

ADNOC said early this month it had struck a deal to buy Covestro for $16.3bn, including debt, the energy giant’s biggest-ever acquisition.

Covestro has until November 27 to accept the offer.

“Subject to the review of the Offer Document, the Board of Management and the Supervisory Board of Covestro assume that they will recommend the acceptance of the Offer to the shareholders of the Company,” Covestro said in a statement. It will issue a statement on the takeover offer “in the next two weeks”.

Following the completion of the deal, it is possible that ADNOC will delist the German company, Covestro CFO Christian Baier told Reuters.

The deal is one of the largest foreign takeovers by a GCC state as countries in the region seek to reduce their dependence on oil amid the global switch to cleaner energy.

The German group, whose main products include foam chemicals used in mattresses, car seats and insulation for buildings, cut its 2024 core profit target for the second time this year to between EUR1bn and EUR1.25bn, saying global demand remained subdued.

Covestro had previously forecast its 2024 earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) at EUR1bn to EUR1.4bn.

The company’s EBITDA rose 3.6 per cent to EUR287m during the July-September period but slightly missed analysts’ average estimate of EUR292m in a company-provided consensus.

Covestro’s third-quarter sales came in at EUR3.60bn, up 1 per cent from last year but below the consensus of EUR3.68bn.

Read: ADNOC to buy German chemicals firm Covestro for $18bn