Rupert Murdoch’s Australian-based REA Group has made its fourth attempt to acquire Rightmove – raising its bid to £6.2bn. Rightmove has said that it “will consider” the new offer.
This marks an increase from the £6.1bn offered earlier this week, with REA urging Rightmove’s board to begin negotiations after several refusals to meet.
Rightmove has already dismissed three earlier non-binding cash and share offers from REA, branding them “unattractive” and insisting that the offers “fundamentally undervalue” the company.
In its latest proposal, REA has adjusted its cash and shares offer, now valuing each Rightmove share at 781p, bringing the total company valuation to approximately £6.2bn. The initial offer, made in early September at 705p per share, valued Rightmove at £5.6bn, followed by further bids of £5.9bn and £6.1bn.
Under this latest offer, Rightmove shareholders would receive 346p in cash, 0.0417 new REA shares for each Rightmove share, and an additional 6p per share as a special dividend in lieu of a final dividend.
REA expressed frustration over Rightmove’s continued rejections and called on the company’s shareholders to encourage the board to support the deal before the deadline of 30 September. The bidder said there had been no meaningful engagement from Rightmove’s leadership beyond brief procedural conversations with Andrew Fisher, the company’s chair.
With the deadline fast approaching, REA has requested an extension to allow further discussions. The company urged shareholders to voice their opinions to Rightmove’s board during the remaining time.
REA has indicated that, if successful in its acquisition of Rightmove, it would seek a secondary listing on the London Stock Exchange, aiming to broaden the investor base. Owen Wilson, the chief executive of REA, told The Guardian:
“We continue to see the potential for us to strengthen Rightmove and accelerate its growth. This is a compelling opportunity to create a true global technology leader on the London market via a secondary listing, operating in two of the most attractive markets in the world.”
