Fisher and Paykel Appliances shareholders could be ready to sell their stake after years of no dividends and a low share price.
Chinese company Haier, a 20% shareholder in FPA, is making a $1.20 a share takeover offer for the company regarded as one of New Zealand's most innovative of manufacturers.
Haier also has an agreement with Allan Gray Australia Pty to buy its 17.46% holding of FPA, giving it a 37.46% stake already.
FPA's production is now mainly in low-cost factories in Mexico and Thailand but the innovative designs are still drawn up in New Zealand, including by a team in Dunedin.
Craigs Investment Partners broker Chris Timms said yesterday that one of the problems for New Zealand-listed companies was that shareholders did not take a long-term view of their investments.
Haier was taking a 20-year to 30-year investment view of FPA.
While some New Zealand holders of FPA had held the shares for a long time, they had also seen the shares reach a high of $3.44 in April 2004 and a low of 25c in March 2009. No dividend had been paid since 2008.
"Investors have held the shares and might see this as a chance to sell and recoup some of their money. There will be people who pick the takeover offer as an opportunity."
Some investors would have bought the shares in anticipation of a takeover offer and would be ready to sell, Mr Timms said.
FPA chairman Keith Turner had urged shareholders to take no action on the offer until an independent report became available next month.
Already, the company was receiving calls from parties interested in acquiring some parts of the company.
"FPA is clearly a very desirable business and we need to ensure that value is maximised," Dr Turner said.
Mr Timms said shareholders would follow the lead of the independent directors.
"If the report says the company is worth, say, $1.50 a share, then we will be looking for good guidance from the directors."
However, some investors would "beat themselves up" if they held the shares and the value went down if the takeover did not proceed, he said.
FPA management appeared to be acting on its stated strategy.
The components business had the potential to provide the company with a new high-margin revenue that could provide earnings growth while the company's traditional appliance markets recovered.
The balance sheet was now also in "very good shape" and the finance business was performing well, even without the benefit of strong consumer demand driving growth in the loan book, Mr Timms said.
New Zealand companies were looking attractive to overseas corporates sitting on a lot of cash, he said.
Those overseas corporates had two choices about growth - either organically growing their business or by acquisition. In the case of a company like FPA, Haier probably believed it was cheaper and faster to buy the technology than try to replicate the research and development itself.
