KUALA LUMPUR (March 1): Shares in MAA Group Bhd extended their gains this morning, and rose to a 14-year high after its major shareholder proposed to take the company private.

At 9.25am, MAA jumped 13.33% or 12 sen to RM1.02 with 3.18 million shares traded.

On Wednesday, MAA said Melewar Group, its major shareholder with a collective 38.67% stake in MAA, is looking to take the Practice Note 17 (PN17) company private through a selective capital reduction and repayment exercise (SCR), of RM1.10 per share.

Under the proposed SCR, entitled MAA shareholders will receive a total capital repayment of RM184.51 million, representing a cash amount of RM1.10 for each share, held on an entitlement date to be determined later.

At RM1.10, the SCR offer price represents a premium of three sen over the market price of MAA shares on May 5, 2016, of RM1.07 — the highest traded market price the stock reached since the group was designated a PN17 company.

MAA was classified as a PN17 company on Sept 30, 2011, following the disposal of its major business, after which it had said it would be exploring various proposals to enhance its earnings profile and regularise its financial condition.