(Alliance News) - Georgia Capital PLC said Thursday it intends to buy back USD20 million shares for its executive equity compensation trust and will cancel the remaining shares repurchased under its ongoing USD45 million buyback.
About USD42.5 million shares in the buyback programme announced in June 2018 have been repurchased.
The Georgian investment company said it is cancelling the shares as the prevailing share price discount to its net asset value "offer attractive value".
"The group's robust balance sheet provides the opportunity to take advantage of current market conditions," Georgia Capital added.
Separately, the investment company also announced it has acquired an 80% interest in Green School LLC, a private school in Tbilisi, Georgia.
Georgia Capital did not say how much the deal will cost, only that it values Green School 5.8 times enterprise value to earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization.
Georgia Capital also noted it will have to pay an additional earn-out if the school's earnings reach GEL2 million, about USD679,000, within the next three academic years.
Chair & Chief Executive Irakli Gilauri said: "I am delighted to announce Georgia Capital's third partnership agreement in the education sector with one of the leading schools in the country. With this partnership, we are entering the affordable segment of private school education, where we see attractive opportunities for a scaled player. Green School provides high quality, affordable education through well-regarded teaching practices and great school facilities. It is our pleasure to work with management team and to make Green School's top-class educational services accessible on a larger scale."
The school currently teaches 1,050 pupils from kindergarten through to Year 12. As part of the deal, the school will expand its capacity from a current 1,250 pupils to 1,500 by 2020 then 1,700 by 2021. Green School will operate three new schools targeting a capacity of 4,000 pupils.
Georgia Capital expects this to cost are GEL33.4 million, USD11.3 million, with GEL16.7 million provided by shareholders and GEL14.9 million debt-financed.
Shares in Georgia Capital were 0.5% higher in London on Thursday at 985.00 pence each.
Georgia Capital (CGEO)