ENGLEWOOD CLIFFS, N.J., April 08, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Asta Funding, Inc. (NASDAQ: ASFI) announced that it has entered into a definitive merger agreement under which the Stern Group, comprised of Gary Stern, Ricky Stern and certain related parties, will acquire the outstanding publicly held shares of common stock of Asta through the merger of Asta with a wholly-owned subsidiary of Asta Finance Acquisition Inc., with Asta surviving as a wholly-owned subsidiary of Parent.

Each share of outstanding common stock will be purchased for $11.47 in cash. The purchase price represents a premium of approximately 36.9% to Asta’s closing stock price on April 7, 2020, the last trading day prior to this announcement.

The Merger was unanimously approved by the board of directors of Asta (the “Board”), acting on the unanimous recommendation of a special committee of independent directors (the “Special Committee”) that was granted full authority to conduct a comprehensive strategic review and evaluate, and if warranted, negotiate an acquisition proposal.

The Merger will be financed by a committed loan facility provided by Bank Leumi USA.

The Merger is expected to close in Asta’s third fiscal quarter of 2020 and is subject to the satisfaction of customary closing conditions as well as the approval by Asta’s stockholders other than the Stern Group. The Asta Board recommends that Asta’s stockholders vote to adopt and approve the Merger Agreement. Upon closing, Asta will become a privately held company and as such, the Company’s shares of common stock will no longer be listed or traded on the Nasdaq Global Select Market.

Advisors

Lincoln International LLC is serving as financial advisor to the Special Committee, Tannenbaum Helpern Syracuse & Hirschtritt LLP is serving as legal counsel to the Special Committee, and Pepper Hamilton LLP is serving as legal counsel to the Company.

About Asta

Asta Funding, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASFI), headquartered in Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey, is a diversified financial services company that assists consumers and serves investors through the strategic management of three complementary business segments: consumer receivables, social security disability advocacy and personal injury claims. For more information, please visit http://www.astafunding.com.