House of Fraser says takeover talks are off |
|
|
Published
:
Sun, 19 Mar 2006 14:05
|
LONDON: Department stores group House of Fraser Plc. said talks for a possible takeover of the firm have ended. It announced the "very preliminary talks regarding a possible offer for the company have ceased".
The country's third largest department stores operator had said late February that it has received an approach and that it was in preliminary talks. It however, did not name the potential suitor. Sources close to the company identified the bidder as private equity firm Apax Partners Worldwide LLP and the bid value of the order of 330 million pounds.
The firm did not spell out any reason for ending the talks.
House of Fraser is a spinoff from Harrods and it was listed on the market in 1994. The company had sold off the future income from its store card, and this deal is ending next year. It had also sold and leased back a large part of its property portfolio, including the stores from last year's acquisitions of Beatties and Jenners. It has got rid off unprofitable sites, including two of London's best known department stores, Dickens & Jones on Regent Street and Barkers in Kensington.
The company has some 61 stores in the country.
As the company announced the cancellation of the talks, its shares fell to a low of 107 pence to recover later to 112 pence, valuing the company at around 300 million pounds.
Analysts following the talks felt the talks never went beyond the preliminary stage and at no point there were any discussion on a due diligence.
The company admitted its underlying sales had suffered during the six weeks since the end of January, falling by 1.6 per cent, though total sales were up 16.2 per cent. It had made a loss of 3 million pounds in the first six months of the current fiscal.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Stock
Quotes * |
|
NASDAQ
|
|
1398.07 |
-137.50 (
-8.95 %)
|
| SYMBOL (
2007-09-26 ) |
| LAST |
CHANGE
|
|
HANSON
(
12:41pm )
|
|
1099.00 |
+3.00 (
0.27 %)
|
|
AMVESCAP
(
11:35am )
|
|
607.50 |
+2.50 (
0.41 %)
|
| SYMBOL (
2008-12-01 )
|
| LAST |
CHANGE
|
|
INTEL CP
(
4:00pm ) |
|
12.56 |
-1.24 (
-9.16 %)
|
| SYMBOL (
2007-09-04 )
|
| LAST |
CHANGE
|
|
|
Print this Story
Shoppers preferred Friday to Christmas eve, says FootFall 