Avusa in R925m deal

Johannesburg - Avusa [JSE:AVU] will acquire units of privately held UHC Communications for R925m in cash and shares, as the media company looks to diversify its business by gaining ground in retail advertising.

Media companies worldwide have been hit hard by the rise of online news and entertainment sites, which have marginalised traditional print advertising.

Avusa, which owns the Sunday Times newspaper and the Exclusive Books book chain, said last week that earnings for the year to end-March 2010 likely fell by up to 45%, hit by weaker advertising income.

The company said in a statement after the close of trade on Monday it will buy two units of unlisted UHC, Universal Print Group and Hirt and Carter, for a total of R925m.

Avusa said the deal will give it expertise in the production of retail advertising material and the development and management of related databases.

Avusa said it would pay R462.5m in cash to UHC and issue 20.6 million new shares to the company at R22.50 each.

That will give UHC a 16.5% stake in Avusa. The share price represents a 22% premium on Avusa's closing price of R18.50.

It will also improve its black economic empowerment, or BEE, scoring, Avusa said.

Shares of Avusa finished up 1.6% before the news on Monday, compared with a 2.2% rise in Johannesburg's All-share index.

- Reuters