Shells proposed purchase of BG

Glen_Clark

Upwind wrote: »

So having 172 shares I would receive the equivalent of 76 RDSB shares by doing nothing - which equates to around £1173...?

At todays prices yes, but if the deal is voted through Shell Shares are likely to fall a bit. But Shareholders sometimes vote against overpriced aquisitions like this, like G4S shareholders did leading to their management being ousted - something Shell management seem to be trying to avoid by promoting this deal against all the evidence to save face. If Shell shareholders reject this deal then BG shares will probably crash - thats why some BG shareholders have already sold out.
Unfortunately, I don't know which way Shell shareholders will vote.

Upwind

Glen_Clark wrote: »

At todays prices yes, but if the deal is voted through Shell Shares are likely to fall a bit. But Shareholders sometimes vote against overpriced aquisitions like this, like G4S shareholders did leading to their management being ousted - something Shell management seem to be trying to avoid by promoting this deal against all the evidence to save face. If Shell shareholders reject this deal then BG shares will probably crash - thats why some BG shareholders have already sold out.
Unfortunately, I don't know which way Shell shareholders will vote.

Thanks for the response Glen - was I correct about the rest of my assumptions...?

C_Mababejive

redmalc wrote: »

I am more confused than ever,i hold 1000 Bg Shares and dont really need the cash so initially i was going to convert the cash element to Shell shares but now given the uncertainty in the oil price which will reflect in the Shell shares for the foreseeable future.
Help Please

I believe that RDSB share price is currently pulled low by of course oil prices and the uncertainty with the BG deal.

I firmly believe that the deal will go ahead and after the dust has settled, RDSB will begin to climb again buoyed up by the fact that the deal is over and done with and /shell will now own BG assets and will seek to capitalise on what they call "positive synergies" ..i.e they will close BG facilities and make redundancies due to duplication of infrastructure and workstreams.

grey_gym_sock

AIUI, you can ask to be paid all in cash, or all in shell shares, but you may not get what you ask for, because shell is not offering to vary the total amounts of cash and new shell shares available; they are only offering to give some ppl more cash to the extent that other ppl want more shell shares, and vice versa.

therefore, if the general opinion (among all BG shareholders) is that all cash would be better, presumably many ppl will ask for that, and few ppl will ask for all shell shares, in which case ppl asking for extra cash will get very little more than the default amount, whilst ppl asking for all shell shares will get what they ask for. OTOH, if the general opinion is that all shell shares would be better, many more ppl will ask for that, and they will get very little extra shares beyond the default amount, whilst the ppl who asked for extra cash will get what they asked for. either way, you will only get exactly what you ask for if you are going against the general opinion.

to my mind, that makes it (relatively) safer to take the default mix of cash and shell shares, not to ask for something else. that way, you will be guaranteed to get the average outcome, even if you aren't sure which is the best option. of course, if you are sure what's the better option (or fairly confident), then you can go for it.

Doors73

Hello.
This is my first post so hoping its in the right place etc.

My mum has received the bg pack re takeover and i understand the figures involved.

Her issue is that she holds a bg group share certificate of 1500 shares but the new pack tells her she only has 1392 shares.

She has phoned the number on the form of election who told her there was a bug mix up in 2007 and to send the share certificate to a po box address and they would send her a new certificate with 1392 shares on it.

Understandably she does bot wish to part with her certificate. Can anyone shed any light on this? Thank you

Glen_Clark

C_Mababejive wrote: »

shell will now own BG assets and will seek to capitalise on what they call "positive synergies" ..i.e they will close BG facilities and make redundancies due to duplication of infrastructure and workstreams.

Its going to need a lot of those to pay for the 50% premium - based on oil prices more than double what they are now.
How many similar aquisitions result in benefits for the shareholders? From what I have seen, very few. Wheras many have famously created value destruction on an epic scale.
(But the management who created them still seem to do OK.)

Glen_Clark

Upwind wrote: »

Thanks for the response Glen - was I correct about the rest of my assumptions...?

Sorry, I don't know about that because I haven't seen the forms (what BG shares I have are held in index tracker ETFs).

xylophone

bug mix up in 2007 and to send the share certificate to a po box address and they would send her a new certificate with 1392 shares on it.

A computer virus? An inputting mistake? Did she buy/otherwise acquire the shares in 2007?

Did she take the name of the person to whom she spoke?

I'd expect an explanation in writing before sending the certificate!

As for sending the certificate for a replacement, I would take a copy and send it insured post, because if it gets lost in the post, she'll have to pay for an indemnity.

As it appears to be a registration error, she might want to insist that any replacement is also sent insured....

A cautionary tale (although of course for very large sums) below.

http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/investing/article-3023285/Couple-face-25k-bill-Capita-posts-Compass-share-certificates-second-class.html

Rollinghome

Doors73 wrote: »

Her issue is that she holds a bg group share certificate of 1500 shares but the new pack tells her she only has 1392 shares.

If your mum has held the investment for a long time, possibly since the privatisation of British Gas, then my guess would be that she may be looking at an old certificate.

There's been a lot of corporate actions over the years which altered the number of shares held. There's a history here: http://www.bg-group.com/280/investors/shareholder-centre/privatisation-and-demerger-queries/ .

She needs to refer to the most recent share certificate or to a recent tax voucher for dividends to see the number of shares she holds.

She could also register for internet access to her account at the Eqinity website at http://www.shareview.co.uk/4/Info/Portfolio/Default/en/Home/Shareholders/Pages/Shareholderservices.aspx.

Doors73

Thank you xylophone and rollinghome.

Mum is losing sleep over this and so i am doing my best to make sure everything is ok for her and your help is invaluable as this is not my forte!

I have had a look at some of her paperwork and the ordinary share certificate that she holds is dated Feb 2012 (after 2007 mix up and as far as i can see post any further bg group mergers and the like).

Mum does have the name of the person she spoke to so i can try calling him at some point too, just prefer to have a little knowledge beforehand.

Thank you particularly to rollinghome for the information on viewing online share information. I think this is the route i will take. Thank you again.