Tag: ABX Air

Air freight service company Astar Air Cargo Holdings LLC said today it will withdraw its acquisition proposal for cargo airline ABX Air Inc. if the suitor does not receive a response by July 18.

On June 26, Miami-based Astar offered to acquire all outstanding shares of Wilmington, Ohio-based ABX for USD 7.75 per share. ABX Air said the proposal is an indication of interest and not a formal bid.

Both Astar and ABX Air have operating agreements with global express delivery and logistics company DHL and both companies maintain air cargo hub operations in Wilmington. The combined company would have a combined employment of about 10,000 and operate a fleet of more than 140 aircraft.

ABX Air, Inc. today acknowledged the receipt of an unsolicited indication of interest from ASTAR Air Cargo Holdings, LLC to acquire all of the outstanding shares of ABX Air for $7.75 per share in cash. No formal offer has yet been made.
The ABX Air Board of Directors, consistent with its fiduciary duties and commitment to enhancing value for shareholders, will evaluate this indication of interest as well as any formal offer actually made. The Company will respond in due course and neither the Board nor ABX Air management will make any other comment on the indication of interest until then.
Goldman, Sachs & Co. is acting as financial advisor to the Company. O’Melveny & Myers is serving as legal counsel.
ABX Air is a cargo airline that operates out of Wilmington, Ohio, and 17 hubs throughout the United States. In addition to providing airlift capacity and sort facility staffing to DHL, ABX Air provides charter, maintenance and package handling services to a diverse group of customers. ABX is the largest employer in a several-county area in southwestern Ohio.

Losing a contract to manage over-the-road freight operations of DHL Network Operations Inc. took a bite out of ABX Air Inc.’s third-quarter profit
The company said late Thursday it earned USD6.6 million, or 11 cents a share, for the quarter ended Sept. 30, down 10.8 percent from USD7.4 million, or 13 cents a share for the same quarter a year ago. Revenue dropped 24 percent to USD281.3 million from USD369.9 million in third-quarter 2005.
DHL, a subsidiary of Deutsche Post World Net of Germany, assumed management of its line-haul business in May, which ABX previously managed, pulling the Wilmington-based company’s profit down, ABX said. This year’s third quarter includes a USD257,000 impairment charge related to the loss of that contract.
DHL’s line-haul business contributed USD74.8 million revenue for ABX during last year’s third quarter.
For the first nine months of the year, ABX reported income of USD21.1 million, or 36 cents per share, which was flat compared to last year’s earnings of USD21.2 million. Revenue fell to USD954.1 million from USD1.1 billion a year ago.