LMI Aerospace, a St. Charles-based aerospace components manufacturer, has entered into a merger agreement to be acquired by Sonaca Group of Belgium.

Under the agreement, LMI shareholders will receive $14 per share in an all-cash transaction, the company said. The offer represents a 52 percent premium over LMI's closing share price Thursday of $9.19 per share.

After the deal closes, LMI will operate as LMI Aerospace - a member of Sonaca Group, with headquarters remaining in St. Charles, the company said in a statement. Daniel Korte will continue to serve as LMI Aerospace's CEO.

This deal brings our combined company to the forefront as a leader in the design and manufacture of complex aerostructures while working to diversify our global customer base, Korte said in a statement. In addition, LMI and Sonaca have complementary product portfolios while largely serving different aerospace primes and Tier 1 suppliers around the world, enabling us to better serve our customers.

Lazard served as financial advisors to LMI and Credit Suisse served as financial advisors to Sonaca.

The addition of LMI Aerospace to the Sonaca Group supports our vision to expand our capabilities in the United States, Bernard Delvaux, Sonaca's CEO said in the statement. Sonaca and LMI have both distinguished themselves in the industry through capabilities such as wing movables, wing panels, complex fuselage and structural assemblies, and together we will be able to strengthen our competitive advantage in the global aerospace market.

LMI also announced expectations for full-year 2016 results. The company said it expects its fiscal year net sales to range between $345.7 million and $346.7 million. The company said financial results for 2016 were negatively impacted by lower sales primarily due to customer delays, higher-than-expected medical costs and unanticipated engineering changes on a design-build contract.

Reuters contributed to this story.

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