CIBT Education Group (
TSX:T.MBA,
Stock Forum) has sold the King George International College and King George International Business College (KGIC) to Loyalist Group (
TSX:V.LOY,
Stock Forum) for $13.5 million, a $9 million mark-up on the $4.5 million CIBT paid for it in 2010.
Included in the deal is an agreement that CIBT will continue to operate KGIC in China.
The $21.54m market cap CIBT, which also owns and operates the 109-year-old Sprott Shaw College brand, has grown the KGIC business in that time from a $16.19m revenue operation to $25m in two years, with student recruitment up from 5,000 to 8,000 in that time.
Toby Chu, President and CEO, and Vice Chairman of CIBT Education Group Inc. said in a statement, “In addition to an aggregated profit of $2 million generated to CIBT since our acquisition, we will record an additional gain of $9 million from this transaction, or approximately $0.14 earnings per share.”
“Going forward, CIBT will concentrate its efforts on growing our portfolio of schools in Canada and abroad under the brands of Sprott Shaw College, Ascenda School of Management and CIBT School of Business China. We will focus on the Canadian domestic market as our base, and expand our international network of student recruitment for substantial growth.”
Chu says CIBT will be focused on acquiring additional schools, expanding their Global Education Alliance brand aimed at international students looking to study in North America, and reaching into real estate developments, specifically with a view to creating student accommodation.
Stock price in CBIT was up 36.96% on the news, to $0.315, on 68,371,644 shares outstanding.