(RTTNews) – Avantax, Inc. (AVTA), a tax-focused asset management company, announced Monday that it has entered into a definitive agreement to be acquired by Aretec Group, Inc., called Cetera Holdings, the holding company of Cetera, a financial advisor for approximately $1.2 billion.
Under the terms of the agreement, Cetera Holdings will acquire the company in an all-cash transaction, including Avantax’s net debt.
The transaction is expected to close by the end of the year.
Shareholders of Avantax common stock will receive $26.00 in cash per share. The purchase price represents a premium of approximately 30% over the closing price of Avantax common shares on September 8, the last full trading day before the announcement of this acquisition.
Upon completion of the transaction, Avantax will become a standalone business unit with 3,078 Avantax financial professionals, representing $83.8 billion in assets under management and $42.6 billion in assets under management, as of June 30, within the Cetera family.
With this acquisition, Cetera will retain Avantax’s legal entities, core technology, product offering and existing clearing and custody relationships.
In pre-market, Avantax shares are trading at $25.44, up 27.32% on Nasdaq.
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