German building firm Hochtief ups bid for bigger Leighton stake

German construction group Hochtief said on Thursday it will increase the price it is offering to raise its stake in Australia's biggest building company Leighton. The increased bid represented a total purchase price of 1.205 billion Australian dollars or 787 million euros ($1.1 billion). Hochtief said in a statement that it would increase its bid to buy three out of every eight shares currently held by Leighteon shareholders to 22.50 Australian dollars apiece. Earlier this week, Hochtief had offered a price of 22.15 Australian dollars per Leighton share in a move to increase its stake in the Australian company from 58.77 percent to 74.23 percent. The offer is still subject to regulatory approvals and will be funded from cash reserves and credit facilities, Hochtief said. The German group is also looking to increase its representation on Leighton's board of directors to reflect the bigger shareholding. Hochtief is controlled by Spanish group ACS. "As of today, Hochtief's chief executive Marcelino Fernandez Verdes, will also become the CEO of Leighton," the statement said. The Leighton board also appointed two further directors nominated by Hochtief. "Further changes to the board composition reflecting Hochtief's majority interest are about to occur in connection with the AGM of Leighton coming up in May 2014," the statement added.