InvoCare shareholders approve TPG takeover

The news: Australia's largest funeral provider InvoCare will go private after shareholders voted in favour a takeover offer from private equity giant TPG Capital.

The numbers: Slightly more than 81% of shareholders voted for the takeover plan, beating the 75% requirement for it to pass. TPG's offer of $12.70 per share was worth $1.8 billion. TPG already owned almost 20% of the company, but was unable to vote on the deal, the Australian Financial Review reports. InvoCare shares were trading at $12.67 at 2:15pm AEDT. InvoCare will be delisted on 3 November, ending 20 years of public listing.

The context: InvoCare's share price nose-dived in February to below $9 as tough market conditions weighed on earnings. TPG made an initial takeover bid of $12.65 the following month, which was rejected as too low, before it increased its offer to $12.70 in August.