PrefBlog

World Financial Split Corp. has announced:

that today, the Toronto Stock Exchange has accepted its Notice of Intention to make a normal course issuer bid. The Fund will have the right to purchase under the bid up to a maximum of 1,275,271 Class A Shares and 1,275,271 Preferred Shares (respectively representing approximately 10% of the Fund’s public float of 12,752,706 Class A Shares and 12,752,706 Preferred Shares, both as of October 30, 2008), together in units (each consisting of one Class A Share and one Preferred Share), commencing November 13, 2008. The Fund may not purchase more than 255,054 of its units (representing approximately 2% of the Fund’s 12,752,706 issued and outstanding Class A Shares and approximately 2% of the Fund’s 12,752,706 issued and outstanding Preferred Shares, both as of October 30, 2008) in any 30-day period under the bid. Purchases made pursuant to the normal course issuer bid will be made in the open market through the facilities of the Toronto Stock Exchange. The normal course issuer bid will remain in effect until the earlier of November 12, 2009, the termination of the bid by the Fund or the Fund purchasing the maximum number of units permitted under the bid. Class A Shares and Preferred Shares purchased by the Fund pursuant to the issuer bid will be cancelled. The Fund has not purchased any Class A Shares or Preferred Shares during the previous year pursuant to any issuer bid.

Directors of the Fund believe that units of the Fund may become available during the proposed purchase period at prices that would make such purchases in the best interests of the Fund.

The possibility of a WFS buy-back has been discussed – inconclusively – on PrefBlog. Assiduous Readers should remember that getting authority for a buy back is one thing; putting cash money down on the table is another.

WFS.PR.A is tracked by HIMIPref™. It is currently a member of the SplitShare index … but is under credit review negative by DBRS and I suspect a downgrade is imminent.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, November 12th, 2008 at 6:52 pm and is filed under Issue Comments. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.