(Updates with Aurora Cannabis' response in the fifth, sixth and seventh paragraphs and updates shares in final paragraph.)
Curaleaf Holdings (CURA.TO) on Tuesday said it is proposing to acquire Aurora Cannabis (ACB.TO) at $4.00 per share.
It is making its intention public after two attempts to engage with the Aurora board had met with silence, Curaleaf said. It sent a formal letter of intent on June 23 outlining Curaleaf's proposal, and a follow-up letter on July 7. No formal offer has been made.
The offer, comprised of 0.35 of a Curaleaf share, plus $0.75 cash per Aurora share, implies a 45% premium based on Aurora's 30-day volume weighted average price (VWAP) of $2.75.
The Curaleaf statement noted the combined company would have a footprint in 17 countries spanning Europe, North America, and other emerging international markets.
Aurora confirmed on Tuesday afternoon that it received Curaleaf's unsolicited takeover proposal. The company also pushed back on Curaleaf's claim that it refused to engage and said its lead independent director remained in contact with Curaleaf's CEO as recently as July 24.
The board plans to form a special committee of independent directors to review the proposal and determine what is in the best interests of Aurora and its shareholders, the company added.
"No decision has been made with respect to the proposal, and there can be no assurance that the proposal will result in any transaction," Aurora said.
Aurora shares closed up C$1.00, or 25%, to C$5.03 on the Toronto Stock Exchange, whlle Curaleaf rose C$0.72, or 5.5%, to C$13.80.