AMP NZ Office Trust MCN on track to deliver positive resultsJuly 2, 2004 New Zealand’s largest listed office property investor, AMP NZ Office Trust (ANZO), today announced that its rights issue of $95.2 million of Mandatory Convertible Notes (MCNs) has received strong support from New Zealand’s institutional and retail investors. ANZO Executive Manager, Rob Lang, said brokers had reported “substantial interest” in the three-year notes from both existing ANZO unit-holders and new investors. “The offer has been extremely popular with New Zealand’s retail broking community which has reported a period of strong and sustained demand from their retail clients since the offer opened on June 14.” Mr Lang believed the popularity of the offer was due in part to the attractive minimum fixed annual interest rate of 8.5%, which represents a “superior investment opportunity”. Brokers have added that the popularity of the offer was due also to ANZO’s strong underlying business and high-quality investment property portfolio, he said. “The offer has a number of very appealing features for retail investors seeking capital stability with potential equity upside, with the conversion mechanism of the notes providing ordinary units on conversion valued at least equivalent to an investor’s initial investment, and the conversion price cap offering investors potential equity upside.” Having a fixed-interest product had also helped to tip the scale for investors. “Recently there have been several IPOs which have received a cool reception, and market commentators are attributing that to investors’ desire to stick to fixed interest investments with sound investment fundamentals.” The money raised by the MCN offer, which closes on July 8, will partly fund ANZO’s purchase of two iconic buildings in Wellington’s Central Business District – the Mobil on the Park Building and the State Insurance Tower, which ANZO has agreed to purchase for $145.8 million. The remaining $55.6 million will be funded through bank debt. The MCN offer to unit-holders is two MCNs for every nine units at an issue price of $1 each. Existing unit-holders were sent an Investment Statement and Short Form Prospectus in mid-June. Mr Lang reminded unit-holders who hold entitlements and wish to take advantage of this investment opportunity to send their completed Letter of Entitlement to the registry, Computershare Investor Services, by the closing date, 3.00pm on 8 July 2004. He also suggested that those investors who were interested in the MCNs, but who were not existing unit-holders and had no entitlement under the offer, should talk to their broker or any NZX Firm before the closing date. ANZO is a unit trust listed on the New Zealand Exchange, which invests predominantly in prime and A-Grade CBD office properties in major New Zealand cities. As a result of the two acquisitions, ANZO now owns ten of New Zealand’s best office buildings with a total value of more than NZ$760 million - Auckland’s PricewaterhouseCoopers Tower, ANZ Centre, IAG House and Quay Tower; and Wellington’s HP Tower, 125 The Terrace, No. 1 and 3 The Terrace and Pastoral House. ANZO is managed by AMP Ronin Management Limited. Media enquiries: |