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(Bloomberg) — Berkshire Hathaway Inc. will acquire Taylor Morrison Home Corp. in an all-cash deal worth about $6.8 billion, the first major purchase under chief executive Greg Abel that signals a vote of confidence in America’s housing market.
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The offer of $72.50 per common share represents a 24% premium to the home builder’s latest closing price on Friday. It’s the largest deal since Berkshire bought Occidental Petroleum Corp.’s petrochemical business in January.
“We are excited to welcome Taylor Morrison into Berkshire’s portfolio,” Abel said in a statement Sunday. “Over time, we expect to unify our site-built homebuilding operations into a combined platform enabling us to deliver the dream of homeownership to more Americans.”
The first multibillion-dollar acquisition under Abel, who took over Berkshire Hathaway this year after legendary investor Warren Buffett retired last year, comes during a period of underperformance for homebuilder stocks and as mortgage rates hit the highest since August. The Omaha, Nebraska-based firm was sitting on a cash pile that reached $397 billion at the end of the first quarter, its highest level ever.
While investors have been satisfied with Abel’s command over the sprawling conglomerate, some have been hoping that a deal could support Berkshire’s shares, which have fallen 5.6% this year. The S&P 500 index has gained 10.7% in the same period.
Taylor Morrison is one of the largest community developers and homebuilders in the US and also offers financial services like home loans, titles, escrow and insurance to consumers, according to the statement. The Scottsdale, Arizona-based firm has more than 350 communities across 12 states.
The existing Taylor Morrison management team, including Chief Executive Officer Sheryl Palmer, will continue to lead the company, according to the statement.
This isn’t Berkshire’s first investment in the home-building business. The company also owns Clayton Homes, and owns shares in Lennar Corp. The deal comes at a time when homebuilding in the US has seen declines. New residential construction decreased 2.8% in April, according to government figures released earlier this month. Starts of single-family homes also declined 9%, which was the most since August.
