Equifax Changes Terms of Offer for Telecredit

Equifax Inc., an Atlanta-based credit rating and financial information firm, amended the terms of its previously announced bid for Telecredit, a Los Angeles-based check guarantee company, the companies announced Wednesday. Meanwhile, the value of the deal has fallen by more than $100 million.

Telecredit shareholders will now get about 2.86 shares of Equifax for every share of Telecredit they exchange, slightly richer than the previous exchange ratio of 2.69 Equifax shares per share of Telecredit.

However, the value of the deal--originally estimated at about $577 million--has dropped to roughly $460 million because Equifax’s trading price has slipped. Equifax shares on the New York Stock Exchange fell $1.875 per share to close at $14.375 Wednesday, while Telecredit jumped $3.25 per share, closing at $39.50. Equifax was trading in the low $20 range before the Telecredit deal was announced.

The companies said the 2.86 exchange ratio is now fixed and will not be amended regardless of what happens to the market prices of either Telecredit or Equifax. However, the revised deal needs to be approved by both companies’ directors and shareholders. Shareholders will soon receive revised proxy materials, the companies announced.