United Education Acts to Double Common Shares

United Education & Software plans to sell an additional 1.2 million common shares, which, along with other transactions proposed by the company and one of its major stockholders, would double United Education’s total common shares to about 6.5 million.

United Education, an Encino-based operator of trade schools, has 3.14 million shares outstanding and, on Friday, it will pay a 50% stock dividend to shareholders of record March 31. That will lift the number of shares to 4.71 million.

The company’s stock closed Monday at $22 a share, or $14.625 adjusted for the upcoming stock dividend, in over-the-counter trading.

Based on the post-dividend price, the additional 1.2 million shares would raise about $17.6 million.

At the same time, StanChart Equities, an affiliate of Union Bank in Los Angeles, plans to exercise a warrant to buy 613,689 United Education shares from the company for $3.33 each, or $2.05 million. StanChart received the warrant for loaning the company $13.5 million. After exercising the warrant, StanChart plans to sell its United Education stock to the market.

Together, the transactions would provide United Education with about $19.6 million based on current prices, and the company would have 6.53 million shares of stock outstanding. United Education said it planned to use the proceeds for future acquisitions and possibly to cut its debt.