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By Alberto Alerigi
SAO PAULO (Reuters) - Shares in Brazil's Petz soared on Friday after the company formalized a deal to merge with rival Cobasi, creating the country's largest pet products retailer.
An agreement on the tie-up had initially been announced in April, when the two companies signed a memorandum of understanding on the merger which has now been confirmed.
Sao Paulo-traded shares of Petz climbed as much as 29.5% on the announcement, making it the top gainer by midday on benchmark stock index Bovespa, which was near flat.
"We believe there was skepticism in the market if the deal would indeed materialize," JPMorgan analysts led by Nicolas Larrain said, dubbing the transaction positive although noting that some terms were "revised down".
Under the agreement, Petz will become a subsidiary of Cobasi and its shareholders will get 52.6% of the combined company, which will be listed on the Sao Paulo stock exchange's "Novo Mercado" segment with stricter governance rules.
Petz shareholders will also receive 400 million reais ($73 million) in cash, including 130 million that will be distributed as extraordinary dividends before the transaction is completed, the company said in a securities filing.
"This compares to an initially announced 450 million reais," JPMorgan flagged.
The new company is estimated to have annual gross revenue of 7 billion reais from 494 stores in more than 140 cities. The merger still requires approval from Brazil's antitrust watchdog, which the companies expect will come in 2025.
Annual synergies were forecast to reach between 220 million and 330 million reais in additional core earnings (EBITDA), Petz and Cobasi said.
The new company will have nine board members, five of them appointed by Cobasi's controllers and four by Petz's reference shareholder Sergio Zimmerman, who will serve as chairman. Cobasi founder Paulo Nassar will be appointed as chief executive.
($1 = 5.4703 reais)
(Reporting by Alberto Alerigi Jr.; Writing by Gabriel Araujo; Editing by Stefanie Eschenbacher and David Holmes)
