万科宣布与深圳地铁达成合作 China Vanke lines up rail deal amid ownership tussle

China Vanke, the property developer enmeshed in a high-profile takeover battle, said it planned to acquire a stake worth an estimated Rmb40bn-Rmb60bn ($6.2bn-$9.3bn) in Shenzhen Metro as part of a long-promised restructuring .

陷入高调大股东争夺战的地产商万科(Vanke)表示，打算收购深圳地铁集团(Shenzhen Metro Group)价值约400亿至600亿元人民币的资产，此举是为了推行其长期以来承诺的资产重组。

The Shenzhen-based home builder — China’s largest by sales — announced the deal in a statement to the Shenzhen stock exchange on Sunday night. At the same time, it reported that 2015 net profit attributable to shareholders rose 15 per cent over the previous year to Rmb18.1bn, while revenues increased 34 per cent to Rmb195.5bn.

周日晚，这家中国销售额最高的深圳地产商宣布了这项交易。同时，万科公告称，2015年归属于股东的净利润同比增加15%，增至181亿元人民币，而营业额同比增加34%，增至1955亿元人民币。

Vanke, one of China’s best-known corporate brands, also said it had signed a memorandum of understanding with Shenzhen Metro Group to take a stake in the urban transit company, and would fund the acquisition mainly by selling new shares to Shenzhen Metro with any shortfall to be covered in cash.

万科还表示，已和深圳地铁签订了一项谅解备忘录，拟收购这一城市交通公司一定数量的股份，并向深圳地铁发行新股票，用于支付此次收购金额的大部分，不足的部分以现金支付。

The size of the share sale and the stake to be acquired have yet to be decided and no formal deal has yet been signed, Vanke said in its statement to the stock exchange.

万科在提交给深交所的声明中表示，此次新股发行和收购股份的规模尚未确定，最终的协议也尚未签署。

“This cooperation is a major breakthrough for Vanke’s asset restructuring,’’ Vanke said on its official WeChat account on Sunday. Shenzhen Metro is profitable and has strategic synergies with the developer, the developer said.

周日，万科在官方微信上表示，“此次合作发布，是万科重组工作的重大突破。”万科表示，深圳地铁集团是国内有较强盈利能力的地铁公司，并且和万科之间存在着战略协同性。

The transaction is pending approval from the board and shareholders, and Vanke’s Shenzhen-traded shares remain suspended. The company is scheduled to hold an extraordinary shareholder meeting on Thursday on its plan to keep its Shenzhen shares halted until completion of the asset restructuring plan.

这宗交易需等待万科董事会和股东的批准，深交所的万科股票仍在停牌中。万科计划周四召开一次特别股东会议，以批准其在资产重组结束前深市股票继续停牌的方案。

Vanke said in December that it was planning a share sale, possibly as part of its defence in a battle for control with its largest shareholder, the obscure privately-held Chinese insurer Baoneng Group.

去年12月，万科表示正准备发行新股，可能为的是抵制宝能集团(Baoneng Group)夺取大股东地位。宝能是中国一家鲜为人知的民营保险企业。

Sunday’s announcement broke three months of silence by Vanke, which suspended trading in its shares in Hong Kong in December saying it was working on “an asset restructuring”. Shares resumed trading in January, and were up 11.4 per cent at HK$20.40 on Monday morning.

周日的消息打破了万科三个月以来的沉默。去年12月，万科已正在实施“资产重组”为由，暂停了H股股票交易。1月份，万科H股恢复了交易，周一上午大涨11.4%，曾涨至20.4港元。

Baoneng has in recent months built a stake in Vanke that made it the developer’s biggest shareholder. Wang Shi, Vanke’s chairman, has attacked the stakebuilding as something that could “ruin” his company’s brand.

近几个月来，宝能逐步买入了大量的万科股份，成为这家地产商的最大股东。万科董事长王石抨击了宝能的做法，认为这可能“毁掉”他的公司的品牌。

The battle has also drawn in acquisitive mainland insurer Anbang. Anbang raised its shareholding in Vanke from 4.5 per cent to 7 per cent late last year and Vanke has said it would welcome Anbang as an investor.

这场股权争夺也吸引了频繁发起收购的内地保险企业安邦(Anbang)的兴趣。去年末，安邦把所持万科股份由4.5%提高至7%，万科表示欢迎安邦成为重要股东。

“Everyone with discerning eyes in the industry knows that this [the Shenzhen Metro deal] is Vanke’s way to counter Baoneng,” said Deng Haozhi, chief analyst at Guangzhou-based property developer Fineland. Analysts said the move could be aimed at diluting Baoneng’s share in Vanke, which stood at 24.26 per cent at the end of last year, according to Vanke’s annual report.

“每个眼睛雪亮的人都知道，这笔（与深圳地铁合作的交易）是万科用来对抗宝能的一种方法，”广州开发商方圆地产(Fineland)的首席分析师邓浩志表示。分析师们表示，此举可能旨在稀释宝能所持的万科股份。根据万科年报，去年底宝能对万科的持股比例为24.26%。

The public ownership fight at China Vanke has intrigued investors because Chinese companies typically prefer to resolve such disputes behind closed doors.

这场公开的万科大股东地位争夺战激起了投资者的好奇心，因为中国企业通常更倾向于关起门来解决此类争议。