The Board of Bellway admitted that their second takeover bid of £650m was rejected by rivals Crest Nicholson in May
In statements made to the Stock Exchange this morning, both Crest Nicholson and Bellway confirmed that a second takeover bid had been rejected.
In the latest offer, made on 7 May, Crest Nicholson shareholders would have received 0.093 shares in Bellway for each share they hold, with an implied value of 253 pence per share(and a premium of roughly 18.8%). Crest Nicholson itself would have held 17% of the enlarged group’s share capital.
The previous offer, made on 25 April, was to buy the share capital and for shareholders to recieve 0.089 new shares. Both offers were unanimously rejected by the Crest Nicholson Board.
Bellway said:
“The Board of Bellway believes that there is compelling strategic and financial rationale for a combination of Bellway and Crest Nicholson which would bring together the strength of each business with complementary brands to reinforce Bellway’s position as a leading UK housebuilder, while enabling Crest Nicholson shareholders to benefit from the scale of the combined business, a reduced risk profile, lower indebtedness and an enhanced landbank to capitalise on the long-term structural growth opportunity in the UK housing market.
“In addition, the Board of Bellway believes a combination would deliver significant operational synergies and support sustainable shareholder returns through the cycle.”
Crest Nicholson considered the bid to have “significantly undervalued” the firm
Crest Nicholson said: “Based on the Bellway share price of 2,718 pence as at close of business on 13th June 2024, the revised proposal represents an implied value of 253 pence per Crest Nicholson share, which represents a premium of approximately 18.8% to the Crest Nicholson share price of 213 pence as at close of business on 13th June 2024 and a premium of approximately 10.5% based on the one-month volume weighted average share price of 229 pence per Crest Nicholson share.
“The board of Crest Nicholson evaluated the revised proposal with its financial advisers and concluded that it significantly undervalued Crest Nicholson and its future standalone prospects and was not in the best interests of Crest Nicholson’s shareholders. The board therefore unanimously rejected the revised proposal on 14th May 2024.”
