Sculptor Capital Management Inc. said that major shareholder and founder Dan Och and his group have agreed to a sweetened deal for the hedge fund from Rithm Capital Corp.
Rithm's amended offer increased the bid to $12.70 a share from an original bid of $11.15, Sculptor said in a statement Friday. It values Sculptor at about $720 million, according to the statement.
But the deal - even if it does not close - will have little effect on the outlook for the REIT, analysts for Keefe, Bruyette & Wood said.
The support of Och potentially puts an end to a bidding war that pitted Sculptor against hedge fund founder Boaz Weinstein and a group of billionaires, who most recently said they would pay $13.50 for the embattled hedge fund firm.
"We are pleased to reach this amended agreement with Rithm, which delivers a highly attractive premium to Sculptor stockholders, and appreciate the support of Mr. Och and the other former EMDs in achieving this outcome for stockholders," Sculptor's board chair, Marcy Engel, said in the statement.
Sculptor shares rose 1.6% to $12.59 at 7:20 a.m. in New York.
Rithm announced in July that it had reached an agreement to acquire Sculptor for $11.15 a share. Weinstein's group, which includes billionaires Bill Ackman, Jeff Yass and Marc Lasry, increased its offer multiple times since making an initial unsolicited bid of $12.25 a share in August.
Both sides have also vied to win support from Sculptor founder Och, one of its biggest shareholders, who has been locked in a bitter feud with his onetime protege, Chief Executive Officer Jimmy Levin, over compensation.
Och and his group of former Sculptor executives have entered into an agreement to vote their shares for the Rithm deal, Sculptor said. Those represent about 15% of the outstanding Sculptor shares, the hedge fund said. The group also agreed to dismiss litigation related to the deal.
Rithm agreed to waive a condition that the hedge fund's clients consent to the deal, as long as it closes by Nov. 17, according to Sculptor.
