Founder’s Redrow bid in the balance
The owner of Wolverhampton Wanderers FC has tabled a preliminary bid valuing the group at 152p a share, equivalent to around £562m, through his Bridgemere Group in association with hedge fund Toscafund.
In order to make a joint bid the UK Takeover Panel has to approve the “joint offeror status” of Bridgemere, which holds at 40.4 per cent stake, and Tosca, which owns 16.7 per cent.
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Hide AdBut Fidelity, which owns 10.5 per cent of the business, complained to the Panel that the “joint offeror status” would be unfair to smaller shareholders.
The offer – which had to be formally submitted by 5pm yesterday and is rumoured to have risen to as much as 170p a share – could be abandoned if Fidelity successfully breaks up the collaboration between Mr Morgan and Tosca.
Redrow’s independent non-executive directors have agreed to put the offer to shareholders with a neutral recommendation that will allow Redrow’s shareholders to make up their own minds.
Fidelity is understood to have said that with more than 57 per cent of the company, such a pairing would be unfair to smaller shareholders, who would have little power to vote down the deal, which needs 75 per cent backing.
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Hide AdMr Morgan returned to Redrow as executive chairman in a boardroom coup in 2009 and has been successful in reviving its fortunes.
Bridgemere increased its shareholding in Redrow from 29 per cent as part of an £80m fundraising to bolster its London division.