|
NationsBank buys Barnett
|
 |
August 29, 1997: 7:36 p.m. ET
$15.5 billion deal largest in U.S. banking history; will create new No. 3
|
NEW YORK (CNNfn) - In what is the largest banking deal in U.S. history, NationsBank Corp. said Friday that it will buy Barnett Banks for $15.5 billion.
The merger will also make NationsBank the third-largest banking company in the nation, with assets of about $290 billion, loans of $180 billion and deposits of $168 billion.
Jacksonville, Fla.-based Barnett, with $44 billion in assets, is the largest bank in Florida and the 10th-largest in the United States.
Trading in NationsBank (NB) and Barnett stock (BBI) was halted for a time Friday at the request of the two companies. Trading resumed in late afternoon with NationsBank losing 3-9/16 to 59-3/4 while Barnett vaulted 13-5/16 to 68-1/8.
Under the agreement, NationsBank will pay 1.18 shares of its stock for each outstanding share of Barnett stock, which represents a price of $75.18 for each Barnett share, or a premium of more than $20 per share.
NationsBank, which is located in Charlotte, N.C., said it expects the deal to be completed sometime in the first quarter of 1998, pending shareholder and regulatory approval.
The banks plan to close some branches in Florida, although the new powerhouse will still dominate the Sunshine State.
David Stumpf, banking analyst at A.G. Edwards, said Barnett's dominance in Florida is one of the reasons NationsBank went after it. (124K WAV) or (124K AIFF)
NationsBank's acquisition beats by more than $3 billion the closest banking deal in size, the $12.3 billion purchase of First Interstate Bancorp by Wells Fargo & Co. and the $11.4 billion deal between Chemical Bank and Chase Manhattan Bank. The fourth-largest came last year when NationsBank's purchased Boatmen's Bank for $9.7 billion.
Although Barnett for a long time heralded its independent status, Thomas Brown, banking analyst at Donaldson Lufkin & Jenrette, said NationsBank's offer was simply too much for the company to pass up. (142K WAV) or (142K AIFF)
Friday's deal is the latest in a string of acquisitions by NationsBank. In June, it agreed to buy investment bank Montgomery Securities for $1.2 billion, and one year ago it announced its bid to buy Boatmen's Bancshares Inc. for about $9.5 billion.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Barnett Bank
|
Note: Pages will open in a new browser window
External sites are not endorsed by CNNmoney
|
|
|
|
 |
|
