(Yicai Global) Jan. 9 -- China's Jangho Group plans to continue its efforts to acquire Healius after the Australian healthcare provider declined a AUD2 billion (USD1.4 billion) takeover offer.

Jangho will communicate with Healius' board and related parties in a friendly manner, the Beijing-based bidder said in a statement yesterday. It offered to pay AUD3.25 (USD0.5) apiece for all Healius shares it did not already own -- about 84.1 percent of the firm -- on Jan. 3.8.

The target "believes that the proposal is opportunistic and fundamentally undervalues Healius," it said in filing to the Australian Securities Exchange on Jan. 7, spurning its largest shareholder's advances. Sydney-headquartered Healius does not plan to pursue the offer further, it added, citing concerns about the highly conditional nature of the bid and unclear funding sources.

Healius shares [ASX:HLS] rebounded from a more-than-a-decade low on news of the refusal, and closed today up 3.8 percent at AUD2.72.

Jangho, which began life as a curtain wall manufacturer, has been moving into healthcare over the past several years, and now owns domestic companies involved in eye disease treatments and third-party medical inspections. It invested in Healius, which runs medical diagnosis, treatment and pathological examination centers in Australia, via a Hong Kong subsidiary in 2016.

Editor: James Boynton