In Brief: First Southeast Mulls Terminating Merger

First Southeast Financial Corp. said Wednesday it hasn't made any decision on whether it will terminate the acquisition of the company by Carolina First Corp. in light of the rise in Carolina First's stock.

First Southeast agreed in July to be acquired by Carolina First in a one-for-one stock swap, when the stock was at $14.75 a share.

However, the exchange ratio was subject to adjustment based on movements in Carolina First's stock, which closed Tuesday at $22.

A First Southeast spokesman said Wednesday that an adjustment in the exchange ratio based on that price would result in First Southeast shareholders receiving about 0.76 of a Carolina First share for each First Southeast share.

The acquisition agreement gives First Southeast the right to terminate the transaction if Carolina First's average closing price over the 10-day period before the deal closes is greater than $19.0156.

First Southeast has called a special meeting of shareholders for Nov. 18 to approve the agreement. The savings and loan holding company said it is "continuing to monitor the situation very closely," but hasn't made any decision on a possible termination of the transaction.

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