Schedule 13E-3 filed with securities regulators in connection with Four Seasons transaction
February 27 2007 - 6:30PM
PR Newswire (US)
TORONTO, Feb. 27 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Four Seasons Hotels Inc.
(TSX Symbol "FSH"; NYSE Symbol "FS") announced today that a
Schedule 13E-3 that includes the form of management information
circular that the Company intends to mail to shareholders in
connection with the special meeting of shareholders to consider the
plan of arrangement pursuant to which Four Seasons would be taken
private has been filed with the United States Securities and
Exchange Commission and the Canadian Securities Administrators. The
Schedule 13E-3 filed today includes the formal valuation and
fairness opinion prepared by Merrill Lynch Canada Inc., the
independent financial advisor to the Special Committee of the Board
of Directors of the Company. Based upon and subject to the
analyses, assumptions, qualifications and limitations discussed in
the valuation and fairness opinion, Merrill Lynch advised the
Special Committee that, in its opinion, as at February 5, 2007, the
fair market value of a Limited Voting Share was in the range of
US$68.00 to US$88.00 per share, and the consideration of US$82.00
per share to be received under the arrangement was fair, from a
financial point of view, to the minority shareholders of Four
Seasons. A meeting of shareholders to consider the proposed plan
arrangement is scheduled to be held on April 5, 2007 in Toronto.
Meeting materials will be mailed within the next week to
shareholders of record on February 28, 2007. It is anticipated that
the transaction, if approved by shareholders, will be completed in
the second quarter of 2007. Four Seasons also announced today that
it expects to announce its financial results for the quarter and
year ended December 31, 2006 on March 12, 2007. Copies of the
Schedule 13E-3, as filed with the SEC and Canadian Securities
Administrators, will be available at http://www.sec.gov/ and at
http://www.sedar.com/ and on the Company's website at
http://www.fourseasons.com/. This news release contains
"forward-looking statements" within the meaning of applicable
securities laws relating to the proposal to take Four Seasons
Hotels Inc. private, including statements regarding the terms and
conditions of the proposed transaction. Readers are cautioned not
to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. Actual
results and developments may differ materially from those
contemplated by these statements depending on, among other things,
the risks that the parties will not proceed with a transaction,
that the ultimate terms of the transaction will differ from those
that currently are contemplated, and that the transaction will not
be successfully completed for any reason (including the failure to
obtain the required approvals or clearances from regulatory
authorities). The statements in this news release are made as of
the date of this release and, except as required by applicable law,
we undertake no obligation to publicly update or revise any
forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information,
future events or otherwise. Additionally, we undertake no
obligation to comment on analyses, expectations or statements made
by third parties in respect of Four Seasons, its financial or
operating results or its securities or any of the properties that
we manage or in which we may have an interest. DATASOURCE: Four
Seasons Hotels and Resorts CONTACT: Four Seasons Hotels Inc., John
Davison, Chief Financial Officer, (416) 441-6714; Barbara
Henderson, Senior Vice President, Corporate Finance, (416) 441-4408
Copyright