KUALA LUMPUR: Dataprep Holdings Bhd’s shareholders, in the main, held tightly to their shares in response to a 16-sen-per-share mandatory takeover offer by Widad Business Group Sdn Bhd’s group executive chairman Tan Sri Muhammad Ikmal Opat Abdullah and his wife.

Widad, through wholly-owned subsidiary Wardah Communication Sdn Bhd, only managed to attract valid acceptances representing 0.01% of Dataprep’s voting shares (i.e. 26,917 shares) as of the closing date on Wednesday.

This was announced on the same day by Kenanga Investment Bank on behalf of the offeror.

Wardah Communication had made the takeover offer after acquiring 64.2% equity interest in the loss-making information technology service firm from VXL Holdings Sdn Bhd last month.

Mercury Securities Sdn Bhd, in the independent advice circular to Dataprep shareholders, said the offer price was not fair and not reasonable.

While Mercury noted that the offer price was above the estimated net asset value of 8 sen per share (the adjusted NAV is 12 sen per share), the amount represented a significant discount to the historical market prices of Dataprep shares for the past one year up to Nov 6 (last practicable date prior to the independent advice circular).

Since Jan 5 this year, Dataprep shares have never closed below 16½ sen. On Nov 1 when Wardah Commnication posted the offer document, the counter closed at 22 sen.

On Wednesday, Dataprep share price ended the day at 20 sen, up half a sen, with 3.355 million shares traded.

Dataprep, which provides IT outsourcing and managed services as well as computer hardware, recorded losses attributable to its owners for the last three financial years.