Apollo, Athene Holding, Decide To Merge- Quick Facts

(RTTNews) - Asset management company Apollo (APO) announced that it has decided to merge with retirement services company, Athene Holding Ltd. (ATH), implying about $11 billion for Athene, in stock.

As per the deal, Athene class A common share will be exchanged for 1.149 Apollo common stock.

Upon closing of the merger, about 76% of the combined will be owned by Apollo shareholders and nearly 26% by Athene shareholders.

Apollo said the deal will substantially add to earnings of the combined company and could be double the earnings of Apollo, reported in 2020

The combined company will have a pro forma market cap of $29 billion and is expected to be included in the S&P 500.

Incoming Apollo CEO Marc Rowan will lead the combined company. Co-Presidents Scott Kleinman and James Zelter will continue to lead Apollo, and Athene will continue to have Jim Belardi as the CEO.

Apollo Co-Founder Josh Harris said, "This merger is an important and strategic step for our firm's growth. Unlike mergers with a high degree of execution risk, this union cements the coming together of two firms that have maintained a close partnership for more than a decade. As a firm, we continue to demonstrate leadership, strategic differentiation and superior performance across our investment platform."

The transaction is expected to close in January of 2022.

APO shares are more than 5% up in the pre-market on Monday. Friday the stock closed at $49.56.

ATH shares are up more than 18% in the pre-market trade on Monday. It closed at $48.88 on Friday, up 2.3%.