Air Canada in talks to purchase Air Transat for $488 million

MONTREAL – Transat AT Inc. is in exclusive talks with Air Canada, which is offering roughly $488 million to buy the travel company.

The Montreal-based company says it has agreed to a 30-day period of exclusive negotiations regarding a possible deal at a price of $13 per share.

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Transat shares closed at $10.58 on the Toronto Stock Exchange on Wednesday.

The company offers vacation packages, hotel stays and air travel under the Transat and Air Transat brands.

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Transat says that after being solicited by several parties, its board has determined that it’s in the interests of Transat and its stakeholders to finalize negotiations on an exclusive basis with Air Canada.

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The company first disclosed that it had held preliminary talks regarding the possible sale of the company last month, but did not name the potential bidders at that time.