Safran shareholders approve Zodiac acquisition

French aerospace firm Safran said its shareholders have approved resolutions to advance the acquisition of seating and cabin interior manufacturer Zodiac Aerospace.

During Safran’s AGM June 15, more than 90.5% of shareholders voted in favor of the agreement. According to a Safran statement, shareholders approved the amendment of the bylaws to create preference shares. The meeting’s results simultaneously authorized the board of directors to issue preference shares in the event of a public-exchange offer. Both resolutions were required to implement the Zodiac offer, Safran said.

At the end of May, Safran had reduced its offer to €25 ($28) per share, down from an earlier price of €29.47. The reduced bid followed a decline in Zodiac’s first-half results and a longer-than-expected recovery estimate.

The day before the meeting, Zodiac said it was on track to resolve its manufacturing problems. CEO Olivier Zarrouati said the group’s progress in on-time and on-quality deliveries is in line with the April 28 plan. He specifically referred to Airbus A350 lavatory deliveries, which are now being delivered at a rate of 10 per month, and to fixing issues in the seat factory in Wales. “We are ahead of the plan, profit-wise,” he said.