DEGUSSA PLANS ONE-FOR-FIVE RIGHTS ISSUE
Degussa AG <DGSG.F> said it planned a
one-for-five rights issue at 225 marks per share, raising
nominal share capital by 61 mln marks, by the end of its
current business year ending September 30.
    The company said in a statement it would also raise nominal
share capital by 20 mln marks in a share swap as part of its
planned takeover of French medicine group <Laboratoires Sarget
SA>.
    The two capital measures will raise Degussa nominal share
capital to 365 mln marks.
    Degussa said last week it intended to buy 100 pct of the
capital of the medical pharmaceuticals group Sarget, based in
Merignac near Bordeaux.
    Sarget had 1986 sales in France, Belgium, the Netherlands,
Spain, Portugal and Italy of 730 mln French francs.
    Degussa has not said how much it would pay for Sarget, but
20 mln marks nominal of 50-mark shares, at today's Frankfurt
opening price of 494.70 marks, would be worth nearly 198 mln
marks.
    A 61 mln mark nominal capital increase at 225 marks would
raise 274.5 mln marks.
    Degussa said the 20 mln mark nominal capital increase would
take the form of an issue of shares for a non-cash
consideration. The April 10 annual meeting agreed that there
would be no rights issue on this capital, which was already
authorized but unissued.
    The rights issue involving the 61 mln mark nominal capital
increase will be led by Dresdner Bank AG. Following that
capital increase, Degussa would be left with 19 mln marks of
authorized but unissued capital, a Degussa spokesman said.
    Part of the 274.5 mln marks from the rights issue would
also be used for the Serget acquisition, he added.
 REUTER
