GOODBODY STOCKBROKERS is preparing to sell developer Liam Carroll’s 29 per cent shareholding in ferry group, Irish Continental Group (ICG), which is pledged against loans provided by the broker’s parent company, AIB.
It’s understood that Goodbody is poised to place the developer’s shares with institutional investors at a price of about €12 a share after receiving positive soundings from investors late last week as it considered orders for the shares.
The shareholding could be sold to investors over the coming days and possibly as early as today, as AIB tries to offload the shares to recoup the money lent to Mr Carroll to amass the stake in the ferry.
The bank provided loans of up to €175 million to Mr Carroll to build up his stake in the group.
AIB took control of the investment in ICG on the back of securities provided by Mr Carroll on the loans following his failure to secure court protection for his Zoe development group last month.
The shares were held by Mr Carroll’s firm South Morston Investment Company, which had provided a guarantee to Morston Investments, one of seven companies for which the developer twice failed to secure court protection.
A liquidator was appointed to Morston Investments on a petition by Dutch-owned ACC Bank.
Following the appointment, AIB installed accountant Billy O’Riordan of PricewaterhouseCoopers as receiver over South Morston Investment Company, effectively giving the bank control over the shareholding in the firm.
ICG shares remained unchanged at €13.40 yesterday after falling in early trading as small volumes changed hands.
The stock has climbed 38 per cent since mid-August when Mr Carroll was locked in a court battle for protection from creditors owed almost €1.3 billion for seven companies within the Zoe Group.
ICG has been the subject of two aborted takeovers over the past 30 months with former bidding rivals, the company’s chief executive Eamonn Rothwell and the Moonduster consortium, led by Philip Lynch, joining forces most recently to attempt a takeover.
They failed to meet a deadline set by the takeover panel last April and corporate activity around ICG has remained frozen since then.
Reports earlier this month suggested that ICG was considering buying up to half the shares owned by Mr Carroll. Such a move would require the approval of the board and shareholders of the group.
NCB Stockbrokers set a target of €17 a share for the company, which reported revenues of €197 million and earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation of €41.7 million for the nine months to September.
