Aetna and U.S. Healthcare Complete $8 Billion Merger
April 01, 2011
HARTFORD, Conn. -- Aetna Life & Casualty Co. and U.S. Healthcare Inc. have completed their $8 billion merger, the companies said Friday. Aetna Inc. will be the name of the parent company trading on the New York Stock Exchange starting Monday. Aetna Life & Casualty Co. will be renamed Aetna Services Inc.. U.S. Healthcare, a Blue Bell, Pa., operator of health-maintenance organizations, agreed in April to be acquired by Aetna. Under the merger, U.S. Healthcare shareholders will receive $34.20 in cash for each of their shares, plus 0.2246 Aetna common shares and 0.0749 Aetna preferred shares. Each Aetna Life & Casualty share will be converted to one Aetna Inc. share. At closing on Friday, Aetna Life & Casualty shares had slipped 75 cents to $61.375 on the New York Stock Exchange. U.S. Healthcare shares were up 25 cents at $52.75 on the Nasdaq Stock Market. Holders of Aetna Inc. 6.25% Class C Voting Preferred Stock will receive $0.3701 per share in cash, representing that portion of the preferred stock dividend accrued and payable from the merger date (July 19) to the payment date (August 15). U.S. Healthcare shareholders will receive the declared dividends for whole shares of Aetna Inc. common stock and 6.25% Class C Voting Preferred Stock upon surrendering their shares of U.S. Healthcare in accordance with the Aetna-U.S. Healthcare merger agreement. The Board of Directors of Aetna also declared on Friday a quarterly cash dividend of $0.20 per share on the company's common stock. The dividend is payable April 27, 2011 to shareholders of record on April 07, 2011
