Unilever could be target of GBP 40 per share break-up bid from private equity consortium
Unilever could receive a break-up offer from a private equity bid consortium, according to a Daily Mail market report. The newspaper mentioned chatter that bankers have encouraged the consortium to make a 4000p per share offer in cash for the listed Anglo-Dutch consumer goods company, but did not cite a source for the rumour.
The rationale for the rumoured bid is to break Unilever up and sell many of the company’s 400 brands to rivals Procter & Gamble and Nestle, according to the report.
A market report in The Independent also mentioned previous speculation this week that a bid for a large UK-listed company was in the offing. SABMiller, a listed UK-based brewing company, had been the subject of the initial rumour, the item noted. Traders speculated that Unilever was instead the target, and that an offer could be pitched at about 4000p per share, the article said.
A Daily Express market report mentioned chatter that Unilever might have attracted the attention of a major US-based private equity group, but did not cite a source for the speculation.
Unilever’s share price closed 7p down at 2678p in London yesterday, giving the company a market capitalisation of GBP 78.73bn (EUR 97.66bn).
Source Daily Mail, Independent, Daily Express