M&A

25 November, 2009

UPDATE 1-Onex sells more of EMS stake for $151 mln

* Sells 3 million shares at $48.31 each

* Sold 3.5 mln shares for $137 mln in August (In U.S. dollars unless noted)

TORONTO, Nov 25 (Reuters) - Onex Corp (OCX.TO) said on Wednesday it had sold another part of its interest in Emergency Medical Services Corp (EMS.N) in a secondary offering, for proceeds of about $151 million.

The Canadian private-equity firm said it sold 3 million shares at $48.31 each, which represents a sevenfold increase on the $6.67 per share paid for the company in 2005.

Onex sold about 3.5 million shares of EMS for $137 million in August, and still holds 13 percent of the company, it said.

EMS is a U.S.-based provider of ambulance services that also helps operate emergency departments at hospitals.

Shares of EMS closed unchanged at $48.34 on the New York Stock Exchange on Wednesday. Onex closed down 0.7 percent at C$23.46 in Toronto. The transaction was announced after markets closed.

($1=$1.05 Canadian) (Reporting by Cameron French; editing by Rob Wilson) ((cameron.french@thomsonreuters.com; 416-941-8199: Reuters Messaging: cameron.french.reuters.com@reuters.net))

Source: http://www.reuters.com