* Orco starts talks with Colony on reserved capital hike
* Deal could give Colony majority stake
* Shares jump before paring gains
(Adds analyst, AGM)
By Jason Hovet
PRAGUE, April 30 (Reuters) - Real estate firm Orco Property
Group <><ORCO.PA> said on Thursday it has started talks
about a 25 million euros ($33.13 million) reserved capital hike
with Colony Capital that could give the U.S. group a majority
stake.
Debt-strapped Orco, which sought court protection from
creditors in March, has seen the value of its properties drop
and has moved to renegotiate debt due this year.
Orco, which holds more than 2 billion euros in real estate
assets, said the capital raising would take the form of 5
million shares with four warrants per share.
It said another 140 million euros could be raised through
the warrants, which will be priced at 7 euros a share once the
group's creditor protection period ends later this year, giving
it the cash boost analysts say is needed to cover its financing.
The initial increase could come by the end of the second
quarter, and the shares will be priced at 5 euros each.
Orco shares in Paris were trading at 7.23 euros by Thursday
afternoon, down 1 percent after gaining as much as 6 percent.
Its Prague shares fell 0.8 percent to 190 crowns.
"Such a new partner would be good for Orco's business in our
view," Ceska Sporitelna analyst Petr Bartek said, adding share
dilution impacts are outweighed by easing of liquidity concerns.
A Paris court granted the Luxembourg-registered Orco six
months of protection from creditors at the end of March, which
is extendable by up to a year.[]
Orco shares have jumped 29 percent since getting court
protection, but are down 86.1 percent over the past 12 months.
Orco already has 10.9 million shares issued. A spokeswoman
said Colony would have a stake of about 30 percent stake in the
group after the first capital hike.
Orco was holding an annual general meeting on Thursday in
Luxembourg but the capital hike was not on the agenda. One
shareholder at the meeting said some there were upset over the
price offered to Colony and timing of the announcement.
Orco's board has proposed shareholders be granted one free
warrant for every two existing Orco shares, allowing them to buy
one new share at the same price as Colony's warrants.
Czech private group Prosperita is Orco's largest shareholder
with a 5 percent stake. An investment vehicle of Orco founder
and Chief Executive Jean-Francois Ott holds 1.6 percent.
Orco's management has been criticised by some minority
stakeholders. This week, Ott said the group would focus on debt
restructuring during the court protection. []
Atlantik FT analyst Patrick Vyroubal said Colony could
become a 60 percent to 70 percent owner in Orco if the full
capital increase went through, but that Orco would get 203
million euros in new capital, including if existing shareholders
took part.
He said the increasing number of shares could shrink Orco's
current net asset value per share by 62 percent.
Orco said in April, after several delays in its 2008 results
announcement, it had booked a net loss of 390 million euros last
year, including 404 million in impairment and asset revaluation.
(Additional reporting by Jan Korselt; Editing by Rupert
Winchester and Andrew Macdonald)
