Simon Boosts Macerich Bid to $23.2B

Simon Property Group sweetened its bid for the Macerich Company on Friday, but will it be enough to bring the mall operator to the table? Indianapolis-based Simon, the largest mall company in America, said it sent a letter to Macerich outlining its best and final offer: $95.50 a share in cash and Simon shares to acquire the outstanding shares of the Santa Monica, Calif.-based self-operated real estate investment trust and the third biggest mall operator. Simon on March 9 made an unsolicited offer of $91 a share, which on March 17 was rebuffed by Macerich after its board unanimously determined that the proposal “substantially undervalued” Macerich and was not in the best interests of Macerich and its stockholders. To ward off Simon’s advances, Macerich adopted a poison pill and classified its board structure to prevent Simon from placing any of its own members on the board. The other terms of Simon’s previous $91 a share offer remain the same, the company said, including consideration in the form of 50 percent cash and 50 percent Simon common stock, utilizing a fixed exchange ratio. The total value of the proposed transaction is about $23.2 billion, including assumption of approximately $6.4 billion of Macerich debt outstanding. The offer represents

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