Kansas City Southern to terminate merger agreement with Canadian National

KANSAS CITY, Mo.–(BUSINESS WIRE)– Kansas City Southern (NYSE: KSU) (“KCS”) today announced that the KCS Board of Directors determined that CP’s revised proposal constitutes a “Company Superior Proposal” as defined in KCS’s merger agreement with Canadian National Railway Company (TSX: CNR, NYSE: CNI) (“CN”). The KCS Board of Directors made this determination after consultation with the Company’s outside legal and financial advisors.

Under the terms of CP’s proposal, each share of KCS common stock would be exchanged for 2.884 CP common shares and $90 in cash. In addition, holders of KCS preferred stock would receive $37.50 in cash for each share of KCS preferred stock held. The proposal is binding on CP and may be accepted by KCS at any time prior to 5:00 pm EDT on Monday, September 20, 2021. The transaction would be subject to approval by the stockholders of CP and KCS, receipt of regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions.

KCS has notified CN that it intends to terminate KCS’s merger agreement with CN and enter into the definitive agreement with CP, subject to CN’s right to negotiate amendments to the merger agreement for at least five business days and the KCS Board’s further determination as to whether any such amendments would cause the CP proposal no longer to constitute a “Company Superior Proposal.”

BofA Securities and Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC are serving as financial advisors to Kansas City Southern. Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz, Baker & Miller PLLC, Davies Ward Phillips & Vineberg LLP, WilmerHale, and White & Case, S.C. are serving as legal counsel to Kansas City Southern.

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Our latest coverage on 8 Sept is here: “The North American railroad soap opera takes another turn“.