News: LNK UPDATE 1-Link proxy investors approve $782 mln buyout from Japan's Mitsubishi UFJ

(Adds proxy results in third paragraph and deal details from fourth paragraph on)

Link Administration's (LNK) proxy investors approved Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group's 8306.T A$1.2 billion ($782 million) buyout bid at a shareholder meeting on Wednesday.

Mitsubishi UFJ in December lodged a bid that would see Link shareholders receive A$2.10 in cash, as well as a A$0.16 per share dividend if the offer was approved.

Nearly 97% of proxy votes and 78.3% of individual investors voted in favour of the bid, a presentation at the meeting showed.

The bid values Link, a pension administration business, at A$1.2 billion on an equity basis and was a 33% premium to Link's closing share price on the last day of prior trading before the bid arrived. Link's enterprise value, which includes debt, stands at $A2.1 billion under the offer's terms.

Link shares were trading at A$2.24 ahead of the Wednesday vote and are nearly 3% higher so far in 2024, according to LSEG data.

The stock was trading at A$1.09 in late November before Mitsubishi UFJ emerged as a buyer in mid-December.

The Japanese financial conglomerate was already a Link shareholder with a 6.4% stake in the firm prior to the bid.

Link is considered the largest Australian pension administration company, providing services to 10 million accounts, or approximately 41% of Australian private pension members.

It also has a share registry business in Australia, Britain and India.