Shanghai Jahwa, one of the nation's largest cosmetics companies, was bought by a subisidiary of Ping An Group, an insider told the Global Times Monday. Details of the deal are yet to be released.
The A-share listed Jahwa made an announcement last Saturday saying the final decision on a successful bidder will be made by the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission (SASAC) of Shanghai Municipal Government, the sole owner of Jahwa. The two final bidders were Shanghai Pingpu Investment Company, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Ping An Trust Company, and Hainan Airlines Retailing Company, a subsidiary of Hainan Airlines. Neither of the bidders had disclosed any price yet.
In the previous bidding proposal, the two companies provided attractive development plans for the cosmetics giant.
According to a China Business News report Monday, Shanghai Pingpu Investment Company was willing to invest 7 billion yuan ($1.10 billion) on the company's integration after the merger, while the Hainan Airlines subsidiary had planned to inject 5 billion yuan.
"Hainan Airlines' offer was more like a hostile takeover given it joined the bidding at the last minute in October when Jahwa was about to close its call for buyers," a healthcare analyst at China International Capital Co (CICC), who asked not to be named, told the Global Times Monday.
Chinese media reported earlier that Ping An Trust's post-merger development plan involves helping Jahwa expand into watch and jewelry fields, while Hainan Airlines had intended to introduce Jahwa brands into the global market.
Jahwa suspended its trading Monday and the trading is expected to resume after the finalized deal is announced.
Hainan Airline was reported to have expanded too quickly in the past 10 years with a potential accounting hole.
The CICC analyst said the company has a good cash flow and brand image.
Founded in 1898, Shanghai Jahwa has been a major company in the domestic cosmetics market. Currently, it has a 1.6 percent share of the domestic beauty and personal care products market, with 10 daily-use cosmetics brands, including high-end skincare brand Herborist.
(Source: Global Times)