Results of Placing

Midwich Group PLC

08 June 2023

 

THIS ANNOUNCEMENT, INCLUDING THE APPENDIX AND THE INFORMATION CONTAINED IN IT, IS RESTRICTED AND IS NOT FOR RELEASE, PUBLICATION, OR DISTRIBUTION, IN WHOLE OR IN PART, DIRECTLY OR INDIRECTLY, IN, INTO OR FROM THE UNITED STATES, AUSTRALIA, CANADA, JAPAN, THE REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA OR ANY OTHER STATE OR JURISDICTION IN WHICH SUCH RELEASE, PUBLICATION OR DISTRIBUTION WOULD BE UNLAWFUL. PLEASE SEE THE IMPORTANT NOTICE AT THE END OF THIS ANNOUNCEMENT.

THIS ANNOUNCEMENT CONTAINS INSIDE INFORMATION FOR THE PURPOSES OF THE MARKET ABUSE REGULATION (REGULATION (EU) NO 596/2014), AS IT FORMS PART OF RETAINED EU LAW IN THE UNITED KINGDOM BY VIRTUE OF THE EUROPEAN UNION (WITHDRAWAL) ACT 2018 ("UK MAR").

For immediate release

8 June 2023

Midwich Group plc

("Midwich", the "Company" or the "Group")

Results of Placing

Midwich (AIM: MIDW), a specialist audio visual distributor to the trade market, is pleased to announce the successful completion of the Placing announced yesterday, as well as the successful completion of the concurrent Retail Offer.

A total of 11,764,705 Placing Shares have been placed by Investec and Berenberg, at the Placing Price, raising gross proceeds of approximately £50m. The Placing Price of 425 pence per share represents a discount of approximately 5.6 per cent. to the closing middle market share price of 450 pence per share on 7 June 2023.

The Company also announces the successful completion of the Retail Offer via the PrimaryBid platform. Retail investors have subscribed via the PrimaryBid platform for a total of 294,233 Retail Offer Shares at the Placing Price, raising gross proceeds of approximately £1.25m. In aggregate, the Placing Shares and the Retail Offer Shares (together, the "New Ordinary Shares") represent approximately 13.2 per cent. of the existing issued share capital of the Company.

Application has been made to the London Stock Exchange for the New Ordinary Shares to be admitted to trading on AIM. It is expected that Admission will take place at 8.00 a.m. on 12 June 2023 (or such date as may be agreed between the Company and the Joint Bookrunners). The New Ordinary Shares will, when issued, be credited as fully paid and will rank pari passu in all respects with the existing issued Ordinary Shares.

The Placing is conditional upon, amongst other things, Admission becoming effective and the Placing Agreement not being terminated in accordance with its terms.

Total voting rights

Following Admission, the Company will have 103,251,326 Ordinary Shares in issue. There are no Ordinary Shares held in treasury. Therefore, the Company hereby confirms that the total number of voting rights in the Company will, following Admission, be 103,251,326. This figure may be used by shareholders as the denominator for the calculations by which they will determine if they are required to notify their interest in, or a change to their interest in, the Company under the FCA's Disclosure Guidance and Transparency Rules.

Capitalised terms used in this announcement have the meanings given to them in the Placing Announcement released yesterday, unless the context provides otherwise.

For further information please contact:
Midwich Group plc Stephen Fenby, Managing Director Stephen Lamb, Finance Director	Tel: [phone]
Investec Bank plc  (NOMAD, Joint Broker and Joint Bookrunner to Midwich) Carlton Nelson / Ben Griffiths / Cameron MacRitchie	Tel: [phone]
Berenberg  (Joint Broker and Joint Bookrunner to Midwich) Ben Wright / Richard Andrews / Arnav Kapoor / Natasha Ninkov	Tel: [phone]
FTI Consulting Alex Beagley / Tom Hufton / Rafaella de Freitas	Tel: [phone]

IMPORTANT NOTICES

The information contained in this Announcement is for information purposes only and does not purport to be full or complete. No reliance may be placed for any purpose on the information contained in this Announcement or its accuracy, fairness or completeness. The information in this Announcement is subject to change.

Neither this Announcement, nor any copy of it, may be taken or transmitted, published or distributed, directly or indirectly, in, or into the United States, Australia, Canada, Japan, or the Republic of South Africa or to any persons in any of those jurisdictions or any other jurisdiction where to do so would constitute a violation of the relevant securities laws of such jurisdiction. This Announcement is for information purposes only and does not constitute an offer to sell or issue, or the solicitation of an offer to buy, acquire or subscribe for any shares in the capital of the Company in the United States, Australia, Canada, Japan or the Republic of South Africa or any other state or jurisdiction in which such offer or solicitation is not authorised or to any person to whom it is unlawful to make such offer or solicitation. Any failure to comply with these restrictions may constitute a violation of securities laws of such jurisdictions. The Placing Shares have not been, and will not be, registered under the US Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "US Securities Act") or under any securities laws of any state of other jurisdiction of the United States and may not be offered, sold, resold, transferred or delivered, directly or indirectly, in or into the United States except pursuant to an applicable exemption from, or in a transaction not subject to, the registration requirements of the US Securities Act and in compliance with the securities laws of any state of other jurisdiction of the United States. No public offering of securities is being made in the United States.

This Announcement does not constitute a prospectus or offering memorandum or an offer in respect of any securities and is not intended to provide the basis for any decision in respect of the Company or other evaluation of any securities of the Company or any other entity and should not be considered as a recommendation that any investor should subscribe for, purchase, otherwise acquire, sell or otherwise dispose of any such securities.

Recipients of this Announcement who are considering acquiring new ordinary shares of £0.01 each  pursuant to the Placing ("Placing Shares") are reminded that they should conduct their own investigation, evaluation and analysis of the business, data and property described in this Announcement. This Announcement does not constitute a recommendation concerning any investor's options with respect to the Placing. The price and value of securities can go down as well as up. Past performance is not a guide to future performance. The contents of this Announcement are not to be construed as legal, business, financial or tax advice. Each shareholder or prospective investor should consult with his or her or its own legal adviser, business adviser, financial adviser or tax adviser for legal, financial, business or tax advice.

Members of the public are not eligible to take part in the Placing. This Appendix and the terms and conditions set out herein are for information purposes only and are directed only at: (a) in a member state of the European Economic Area (the "EEA"), persons who are, unless otherwise agreed by Investec (as defined below) and Berenberg (as defined below) (together, the "Joint Bookrunners"), "qualified investors" as defined in Article 2(e) of the Prospectus Regulation (EU) 2017/1129 as supplemented by Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2019/980 and Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2019/979 (the "EU Prospectus Regulation") and includes any relevant implementing measure in any member state); and (b) in the United Kingdom, persons who are qualified investors within the meaning of Article 2(e) of the EU Prospectus Regulation as amended and transposed into the laws of the United Kingdom pursuant to the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018 and the European Union (Withdrawal Agreement) Act 2020 (as amended) (the "UK Prospectus Regulation") and who are:  (i) "investment professionals" within the meaning of Article 19(5) of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (Financial Promotion) Order 2005 as amended (the "Order"); (ii) persons falling within Article 49(2)(a) to (d) ("high net worth companies, unincorporated associations, etc") of the Order; or (iii) persons to whom it may otherwise be lawfully communicated (all such persons together being referred to as "Relevant Persons"). This Announcement and the terms and conditions set out herein must not be acted on or relied on by persons who are not Relevant Persons. Any investment or investment activity to which this Announcement and the terms and conditions set out herein relate is available only to Relevant Persons and will be engaged in only with Relevant Persons. Persons into whose possession this Announcement (including the Appendix) comes are required by the Company and the Joint Bookrunners to inform themselves about and to observe any such restrictions.

This Announcement is not being distributed by, nor has it been approved for the purposes of section 21 of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000, as amended ("FSMA") by, a person authorised under FSMA. This Announcement is being distributed and communicated to persons in the United Kingdom only in circumstances in which section 21(1) of FSMA does not apply. No prospectus will be made available in connection with the matters contained in this Announcement and no such prospectus is required (in accordance with the UK Prospectus Regulation) to be published. Persons needing advice should consult an independent financial adviser.  Reliance on this Announcement for the purpose of engaging in any investment activity may expose an individual to a significant risk of losing all of the property or other assets invested.

Persons (including without limitation, nominees and trustees) who have a contractual right or other legal obligations to forward a copy of this Announcement should seek appropriate advice before taking any action.

This Announcement has been issued by, and is the sole responsibility of, the Company. No undertaking, representation or warranty or other assurance, express or implied, is or will be made or given by either of the Joint Bookrunners, or by any of their respective partners, directors, officers, employees, advisers, consultants or affiliates as to or in relation to, the accuracy or completeness of the information or opinions contained in this Announcement or any other written or oral information made available to any interested person or its advisers, and any liability therefore is expressly disclaimed. None of the information in this Announcement has been independently verified or approved by either of the Joint Bookrunners or any of their respective partners, directors, officers, employees, advisers, consultants or affiliates. Save for any responsibilities or liabilities, if any, imposed on the Joint Bookrunners by FSMA or by the regulatory regime established under it, no responsibility or liability whether arising in tort, contract or otherwise, is accepted by either of the Joint Bookrunners or any of their respective partners, directors, officers, employees, advisers, consultants or affiliates for any errors, omissions or inaccuracies in such information or opinions or for any loss, cost or damage suffered or incurred howsoever arising, directly or indirectly, from any use of this Announcement or its contents or otherwise in connection with this Announcement or from any acts or omissions of the Company in relation to the Placing.

Investec Bank plc is authorised by the Prudential Regulatory Authority (the "PRA") and regulated in the United Kingdom by the PRA and the Financial Conduct Authority ("FCA"). Investec Europe Limited (trading as Investec Europe), acting as agent on behalf of Investec Bank plc in certain jurisdictions in the EEA, ("Investec Europe" and Investec Bank plc together, "Investec") is regulated in Ireland by the Central Bank of Ireland. Investec is acting exclusively for the Company and no one else in connection with the Placing, the contents of this Announcement and other matters described in this Announcement.  Investec will not regard any other person as its client in relation to the Placing, the contents of this Announcement and other matters described in this Announcement and will not be responsible to anyone (including any Placees) other than the Company for providing the protections afforded to its clients or for providing advice to any other person in relation to the Placing, the content of this Announcement or any other matters referred to in this Announcement.

Investec's responsibilities as the Company's nominated adviser under the AIM Rules for Nominated Advisers are owed solely to London Stock Exchange plc (the "London Stock Exchange") and are not owed to the Company or to any director of the Company or to any other person.

Joh. Berenberg, Gossler & Co. KG, London Branch ("Berenberg"), which is authorised and regulated by the German Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (BaFin) and in the United Kingdom is deemed authorised under the Temporary Permission Regime and subject to limited regulation by the FCA, is acting solely for the Company and no-one else in connection with the transactions and arrangements described in this Announcement and will not regard any other person (whether or not a recipient of this Announcement) as a client in relation to the transactions and arrangements described in this Announcement. Berenberg is not responsible to anyone (including any Placees) other than the Company for providing the protections afforded to clients of Berenberg or for providing advice in connection with the contents of this Announcement or the transactions and arrangements described herein.

The distribution of this Announcement and the offering of the Placing Shares in certain jurisdictions may be restricted by law. No action has been taken by the Company or either of the Joint Bookrunners that would permit an offering of such shares or possession or distribution of this Announcement or any other offering or publicity material relating to such shares in any jurisdiction where action for that purpose is required. Persons into whose possession this Announcement comes are required by the Company, Investec and Berenberg to inform themselves about, and to observe, such restrictions.

In connection with the Placing, each of the Joint Bookrunners and any of their affiliates, acting as investors for their own account, may take up a portion of the shares in the Placing as a principal position and in that capacity may retain, purchase, sell, offer to sell for the own accounts or otherwise deal for their own account in such shares and other securities of the Company or related investments in connection with the Placing or otherwise. Accordingly, references to Placing Shares being offered, acquired, placed or otherwise dealt in should be read as including any issue or offer to, or acquisition, placing or dealing by, the Joint Bookrunners and any of their affiliates acting in such capacity. In addition, the Joint Bookrunners and any of their affiliates may enter into financing arrangements (including swaps) with investors in connection with which the Joint Bookrunners and any of their respective affiliates may from time to time acquire, hold or dispose of shares. The Joint Bookrunners do not intend to disclose the extent of any such investment or transactions otherwise than in accordance with any legal or regulatory obligations to do so.

No statement in this Announcement is intended to be a profit forecast or estimate, and no statement in this Announcement should be interpreted to mean that earnings per share of the Company for the current or future financial years would necessarily match or exceed the historical published earnings per share of the Company.

Cautionary statements

This Announcement may contain and the Company may make verbal statements containing "forward-looking statements" with respect to certain of the Company's plans and its current goals and expectations relating to its future financial condition, performance, strategic initiatives, objectives and results. Forward-looking statements sometimes use words such as "aim", "anticipate", "target", "expect", "estimate", "intend", "plan", "goal", "believe", "seek", "may", "could", "outlook" or other words of similar meaning. By their nature, all forward-looking statements involve risk and uncertainty because they relate to future events and circumstances which are beyond the control of the Company, including amongst other things, United Kingdom domestic and global economic and business conditions, market-related risks such as fluctuations in interest rates and exchange rates, the policies and actions of governmental and regulatory authorities, the effect of competition, inflation, deflation, the timing effect and other uncertainties of future acquisitions or combinations within relevant industries, the effect of tax and other legislation and other regulations in the jurisdictions in which the Company and its respective affiliates operate, the effect of volatility in the equity, capital and credit markets on the Company's profitability and ability to access capital and credit, a decline in the Company's credit ratings; the effect of operational risks; and the loss of key personnel. As a result, the actual future financial condition, performance and results of the Company may differ materially from the plans, goals and expectations set forth in any forward-looking statements. Any forward-looking statements made in this Announcement by or on behalf of the Company speak only as of the date they are made. These forward-looking statements reflect the Company's judgment at the date of this Announcement and are not intended to give any assurance as to future results and cautions that its actual results of operations and financial condition, and the development of the industry in which it operates, may differ materially from those made in or suggested by the forward-looking statements contained in this Announcement. The information contained in this Announcement is subject to change without notice.  Except as required by applicable law or regulation, the Company expressly disclaims any obligation or undertaking to publish any updates, supplements or revisions to any forward-looking statements contained in this Announcement to reflect any changes in the Company's expectations with regard thereto or any changes in events, conditions or circumstances on which any such statement is based. 

Neither the content of the Company's website (or any other website) nor the content of any website accessible from hyperlinks on the Company's website (or any other website) is incorporated into or forms part of this Announcement.

Information to Distributors

EU Product Governance Requirements

Solely for the purposes of the product governance requirements contained within: (a) EU Directive 2014/65/EU on markets in financial instruments, as amended ("MiFID II"); (b) Articles 9 and 10 of Commission Delegated Directive (EU) 2017/593 supplementing MiFID II; and (c) local implementing measures as amended and transposed into the laws of the United Kingdom pursuant to the Markets in Financial Instruments (Amendment) (EU Exit) Regulations 2018; (together, the "MiFID II Product Governance Requirements"), and disclaiming all and any liability, whether arising in tort, contract or otherwise, which any "manufacturer" (for the purposes of the MiFID II Product Governance Requirements) may otherwise have with respect thereto, the Placing Shares have been subject to a product approval process, which has determined that the Placing Shares are: (i) compatible with an end target market of (a) retail investors, (b) investors who meet the criteria of professional clients and (c) eligible counterparties, each as defined in MiFID II; and (ii) eligible for distribution through all distribution channels as are permitted by MiFID II (the "EU Target Market Assessment"). Notwithstanding the EU Target Market Assessment, distributors should note that: the price of the Placing Shares may decline and investors could lose all or part of their investment; Placing Shares offer no guaranteed income and no capital protection; and an investment in Placing Shares is compatible only with investors who do not need a guaranteed income or capital protection, who (either alone or in conjunction with an appropriate financial or other adviser) are capable of evaluating the merits and risks of such an investment and who have sufficient resources to be able to bear any losses that may result therefrom. The EU Target Market Assessment is without prejudice to the requirements of any contractual, legal or regulatory selling restrictions in relation to the Placing. Furthermore, it is noted that, notwithstanding the EU Target Market Assessment, the Joint Bookrunners will only procure investors who meet the criteria of professional clients and eligible counterparties.

For the avoidance of doubt, the EU Target Market Assessment does not constitute: (a) an assessment of suitability or appropriateness for the purposes of MiFID II; or (b) a recommendation to any investor or group of investors to invest in, or purchase, or take any other action whatsoever with respect to Placing Shares. Each distributor is responsible for undertaking its own target market assessment in respect of the Placing Shares and determining appropriate distribution channels.

Each distributor is responsible for undertaking its own EU Target Market Assessment in respect of the Placing Shares and determining appropriate distribution channels.

UK Product Governance Requirements

Solely for the purposes of the product governance requirements contained within the FCA Handbook Product Intervention and Product Governance Sourcebook (the "UK Product Governance Rules"), and disclaiming all and any liability, whether arising in tort, contract or otherwise, which any 'manufacturer' (for the purposes of the UK Product Governance Rules) may otherwise have with respect thereto, the Placing Shares have been subject to a product approval process, which has determined that such Placing Shares are: (i) compatible with an end target market of: (a) investors who meet the criteria of professional clients as defined in point (8) of Article 2(1) of UK Prospectus Regulation; (b) eligible counterparties, as defined in the FCA Handbook Conduct of Business Sourcebook ("COBS"); and (c) retail clients who do not meet the definition of professional client under (b) or eligible counterparty per (c); and (ii) eligible for distribution through all distribution channels as are permitted by Directive 2014/65/EU (the "UK Target Market Assessment"). Notwithstanding the UK Target Market Assessment, distributors should note that: the price of the Placing Shares may decline and investors could lose all or part of their investment; the Placing Shares offer no guaranteed income and no capital protection; and an investment in the Placing Shares is compatible only with investors who do not need a guaranteed income or capital protection, who (either alone or in conjunction with an appropriate financial or other adviser) are capable of evaluating the merits and risks of such an investment and who have sufficient resources to be able to bear any losses that may result therefrom. The UK Target Market Assessment is without prejudice to the requirements of any contractual, legal or regulatory selling restrictions in relation to the Placing.  Furthermore, it is noted that, notwithstanding the UK Target Market Assessment, the Joint Bookrunners shall only procure investors which meet the criteria of professional clients and eligible counterparties.

For the avoidance of doubt, the UK target market assessment does not constitute: (a) an assessment of suitability or appropriateness for the purposes of COBS 9A and COBS 10A, respectively; or (b) a recommendation to any investor or group of investors to invest in, or purchase or take any other action whatsoever with respect to the Placing Shares.

Each distributor is responsible for undertaking its own UK target market assessment in respect of the Placing Shares and determining appropriate distribution channels.

 

END