Australia’s Qube Holdings’ shares hit record high as Macquarie proposes $7.5 billion takeover deal

Australia’s Qube Holdings announced on Monday that Macquarie Asset Management had submitted a non-binding proposal to acquire the logistics company at an enterprise value of 11.6 billion Australian dollars ($7.49 billion).

Macquarie has offered to acquire Qube for AU$5.2 per share in cash, representing a nearly 28% premium to Qube’s closing share price of AU$4.07 on Friday.

Qube shares jumped 19.4% to close at a record-high of AU$4.86 on Monday, according to LSEG data, while Macquarie Group, the parent company of the asset management unit, saw its shares dip as much as 0.31% to close at AU$193.48.

The takeover bid followed a period of negotiations after a lower unsolicited offer from Macquarie asset management earlier, Qube said in its filing, without specifying the exact value of the previous offer.

The enterprise value represents about 14.4 times Qube’s earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization, or EBITDA, for financial year 2025, according to the filing. Enterprise value typically measures a company’s total value, comprising its market capitalization and the cost to pay off its debt, minus cash.

Qube’s operations mostly involve container leasing, car and grain cargo terminals and road and rail transport services.

The deal is subject to a “satisfactory completion” of due diligence on Qube and its operations, final approval from both companies’ boards and regulatory approvals.

Qube said it has entered into an exclusivity deed with Macquarie, during which the asset manager would have the opportunity to undertake due diligence until Feb. 1, 2026.

“We look forward to continuing to engage constructively in the best interests of our shareholders,” Qube Chairman John Bevan said in the filing.

In an emailed response Monday, a spokesperson for Macquarie Asset Management declined CNBC’s request for comment.

Macquarie Asset Management currently manages almost AU$960 billion in assets globally across public and private markets with portfolio companies covering infrastructure, real estate and agriculture sectors.

Following Qube’s announcement, Samuel Seow, vice president and equity analyst at Citi Bank, reaffirmed his “buy” rating on the company, with a target price of AU$4.9. Seow flagged potential downside risks such as price competition in Australian logistics market and industrial action that may impact Qube’s workforce.

The Qube-Macquarie proposed transaction comes at a times when the Australian logistics sector has seen heightened dealmaking activity, with major players seeking to expand their reach in the country.

DP World, which operates terminals and warehouses at ports across Australia, earlier this year acquired Silk Logistics for AU$175 million, taking over its landside warehousing and wharf cartage transportation business — operations that involves moving goods from ports to warehouses or other destinations.

Lindsay Australia in May acquired SRT Logistics, Tasmania’s largest refrigerated supply chain operator, for about $108 million, upping the ante in expanding its national cold chain footprint. That followed the acquisition of GJ Freight earlier this year as Lindsay seeks to expand its operations into Western Australia.

Separately, Australia’s BHP Group, the world’s biggest miner, announced Monday that it was abandoning its pursuit of British mining company Anglo American, reversing its attempt at a reportedly $49 billion takeover of Anglo it initiated last year.