Getting latest data loading
X

Request a Call to Trade

In addition to the daily Research emails, I would also like to receive the Accendo Markets Weekly Newsletter and occasional Market Report emails highlighting various trading opportunities.
When you enter your telephone number, we may call or message you occasionally with trading opportunities. You can opt out at any time
Home / Merger & Takeover / Mergers & Takeovers

This report is not a personal recommendation and does not take into account your personal circumstances or appetite for risk.

Mergers & Takeovers - 13 September 2018

When one company acquires another a premium is often paid. Although shares can go down as well as up, a takeover can result in a significant profit for the shareholders. When companies merge the transaction can involve cash and shares, again meaning a windfall (small or large) for shareholders.

Could the offers and potential speculation in the table below collapse with opportunities to trade the shares short, or could huge premiums soon be offered for the prey meaning an opportunity to profit from being long? Could abandoned deals be revived? Could rivals swoop in with better offers, starting a bidding war?

When a deal is announced, a premium is often necessary to sweeten the deal for shareholders of the company being acquired. After all, they are giving up the possibility of future rises in the share price and/or dividend payments. For shareholders, this can sometimes mean a big windfall.

For example Shire offered a 42% premium for AbbVie and Pfizer offered a 35% premium for AstraZeneca. Sometimes, however, the offer comes after speculation and the shares have already reacted, meaning the premium offered (versus the most recent price) is less than the earlier reaction by the shares.

Of course the fact that there has been takeover speculation in the past does not necessarily mean that anything will come of it, or that the share price will rise. Indeed, the value of the shares can fall if no such offer is forthcoming. However, there have been many instances in the past where a sizeable takeover approach has been made following a lengthy period of speculation.

Want to know more?

Big M&A deals tend to be heavily traded by investors & traders, making them important a market point of view. They also often involve stocks which representing a cornerstone of many a portfolio. If you want to trade potential or confirmed M&A deals, Accendo Markets is here to help keep you in the loop.

If something major is announced when will you find out? That day? The next? The benefits of working with Accendo Markets is getting a call from your trader in-time and on-time, not just sometime.

We’re here to make sure you are in a position to participate in the UK’s biggest M&A in the most cost effective manner, this sitting alongside our award-winning trading and research service focused on the markets and which set us apart from the competition.

The Accendo approach – what’s different?

At Accendo Markets we don’t tell you what to do. It’s your call whether you buy or sell. Our aim is to provide the help you need, highlighting opportunities which may be profitable to you the trader and assist you in making trading decisions which can benefit from the use of leveraged instruments.

Our approach focuses on 3 elements below;

  • Education – not obligation
  • Observations – not recommendations
  • Assistance – not persistence

Our unique and award-winning service provides you with the help and tools you need to make appropriate trading decisions in the financial markets, both to grow and protect your capital.

CFDs – A simple way to increase M&A profit potential

While traditional shares require the full amount be paid up front (e.g. 5,000 shares at 200p, would require the full £10,000 outlay), an identical trade using CFDs involves an initial outlay of just £500-£2,500 (CFDs typically require 5-25% deposits depending on liquidity). The outlay is lower but the risk and reward are the same as if £10,000 of shares were held.

The CFD trader benefits/suffers to the same extent as the shareholder but has the advantage of not having to part with the full amount at the outset. He also saves on stamp duty as there is no physical share purchase. Best of all, the CFD trader can take a positive or negative view (short-selling not always available if shares can’t be borrowed).

Should you not be interested in the leverage advantage of CFDs, but do wish to purchase traditional shares, you can always treat CFDs like shares and reduce costs by avoiding stamp duty). Simply deposit the full value of the share position you would like to take (i.e. £10,000) and take an equivalent CFD position (note overnight financing costs on full exposure still apply).

Think the shares will rise? Take a long position by buying the CFDs. Think the shares will fall? Take a short position by selling the CFDs. (sometimes not possible if shares cannot be borrowed) For a more detailed rundown of CFDs, their mechanics, associated costs and some trading scenarios click here.

Beware that the combination of CFD leverage and bigger share-price movements (volatility) can result in bigger than expected losses, which can even exceed your original deposit

Date Prey Country Ticker Predator Country Ticker Source/Details Share Price Reaction Offer Premium
13-Sep-18 Debenhams UK DEB Sports Direct UK SPD Sports Direct announced it is not planning to make an offer for Debenhams -8.0%
10-Sep-18 Asda/Walmart US WMT Sainsbury UK SBRY Sainsbury CEO says Asda deal could be halted by regulators 0.6%
10-Sep-18 RPC Group UK RPC Bain Capital US Company in takeover discussions with Bain Capital & Apollo Global Management 21.0%
03-Sep-18 Dicom Canada CA Royal Mail Group UK RMG Royal Mail buys Dicom Canada parcel delivery company for C$350m 2.2%
31-Aug-18 Whitbread UK WTB Coca-Cola US Whitbread agrees to sell its Costa Coffee subsidiary to Coca-Cola for £3.9bn 18.0%
13-Aug-18 eSure UK ESUR Bain Capital US Private equity group Bain Capital is in talks to take Esure private for £1.2bn 31.0% 37.0%
10-Aug-18 House of Fraser UK Sports Direct UK SPD Sports Direct purchases House of Fraser for £90m
23-Jul-18 WPP UK WPP Alibaba CH 1688 WPP in talks with Tencent & Alibaba to seel WPP’s Chinese advertising business 3.2%
23-Jul-18 WPP UK WPP Tencent CH 0700 WPP in talks with Tencent & Alibaba to seel WPP’s Chinese advertising business 3.2%
11-Jul-18 Sky UK SKY Comcast US CMCSA Comcast ups Sky bid to 1475p/share 3.4% -1.3%
11-Jul-18 Sky UK SKY 21st Century Fox US FOXA Fox ups Sky bid to 1400p/share -1.2% -6.7%
10-Jul-18 Shire UK SHP Takeda JP 4502 US regulators approve Takeda’s takeover of Shire 1.0%
10-Jul-18 Sky UK SKY 21st Century Fox US FOXA FT reports Fox preparing new Sky offer to outbid Comcast 2.0%
06-Jul-18 Inmarsat UK ISAT EchoStar US SATS Echostar offers 523p (265p cash, 0.0777 new shares), but ISAT rejects -10.0% 46%
04-Jul-18 Anglo American UK AAL Volcon Inv. Livemint reports Volcan (family trust of Vedanta founder) considering acquiring Anglo’s South African business 2.3%
02-Jul-18 Vedanta Resources UK VED Volcon Inv. Volcon Inv. (family trust of VED founder Anil Agarwa), offers 825p/share for remaining 33% 27.6% 32.4%
28-Jun-18 Chargemaster UK BP UK BP BP buys Chargemaster, UK’s largest electric vehicle charging network operator for £130m. 2.4%
28-Jun-18 Shire UK SHP Takeda JP 4502 Takeda CEO averts minority shareholder proposal to cancel the Shire takeover 2.4%
27-Jun-18 Sky UK SKY Disney US DIS FY reports Hedge Funds pushing Disney to increase offer for Sky, after offering 35% more for Fox 1.0%
26-Jun-18 Inmarsat UK ISAT Eutelsat Comms FR ETL Eutelsat Communications rules out a bid for rival Inmarsat -9.7%
25-Jun-18 Inmarsat UK ISAT Eutelsat Comms FR ETL Eutelsat Communications says mulling bid for Inmarsat 4.0%
25-Jun-18 IWG UK IWG Terra Firma UK IWG gets undisclosed cash takeover offer from private equity 1.2%
18-Jun-18 Aviva UK AVV Allianz DE ALV The Times reports Allianz on the proal for a large-scale UK acquisition 1.4%
18-Jun-18 RSA Insurance UK RSA Allianz DE ALV The Times reports Allianz on the proal for a large-scale UK acquisition 0.5%
18-Jun-18 Virgin Money UK VM CYBG UK CYBG VM agress to £1.7bn all share (371p per share) takeover -2.3% 19%
11-Jun-18 Inmarsat UK ISAT EchoStar US SATS Inmarsat rejects potential takeover offer from US satellite operator 14.0%
06-Jun-18 Smurfit Kappa UK SKG International Paper US IP International Paper said it won’t go ahead with its proposed €8.9bn offer for Smurfit Kappa
13-Jun-18 Sky UK SKY Comcast US CMCSA Comcast bids for 21CFox assets that Disney agreed to buy in Dec, incl. 39% stake in Sky
05-Jun-18 Sky UK SKY 21st Century Fox US FOXA UK regulators plan to approve 21st Century Fox bid for Sky
29-May-18 ICU Medical US ICUI Smiths Group UK SMIN Smiths Group is in talks with ICU Medical about a potential merger of their medical device businesses 3.0%
23-May-18 Standard Chartered UK STAN Barclays UK BARC Barclays considering merger with Standard Chartered to fend off activist investors 2.0%
17-May-18 Ocado UK OCDO Kroger US Online retailer Ocado strikes deal with US grocery chain Kroger to license platform and sell 5% stake 41.0%
16-May-18 FanDuel US Paddy Power UK PPB PaddyPower Betfair in talks to buy US fantasy sports company FanDuel 5.0%
14-May-18 IWG UK IWG TDR Capital UK IWG receives takeover approaches from 3 private equity groups 21.0%
14-May-18 IWG UK IWG Starwood US IWG receives takeover approaches from 3 private equity groups 21.0%
14-May-18 IWG UK IWG Lone Star US IWG receives takeover approaches from 3 private equity groups 21.0%
11-May-18 ZPG UK ZPG Silver Lake US ZPG plc agrees to £2.2bn/490p per share takeover by US private equity firm Silver Lake. 30.0% 31%
08-May-18 Titlestone UK Paragon Banking UK PAG PAG otes press speculation about possible acquisition of Titlestone; says early stages of considering 2.0%
08-May-18 Virgin Money UK VM CYBG UK CYBG CYBG Proposed all share merger 10.0% 15%
08-May-18 Shire UK SHP Takeda JP 4502 Takeda confimed cash & shares offer to acquire Shire @ £49/share (o/w $30.33 cash) 5.0% 60%
30-Apr-18 Asda/Walmart US WMT Sainsbury UK SBRY J Sainsbury struck a deal to merger with Walmart’s Asda, paying it £2.98B and a 42% share 14.5%
25-Apr-18 Sky UK SKY Comcast US CMCSA Comcast makes a formal bid for Sky, at £12.50/share 3.9% -4.4%
25-Apr-18 Shire UK SHP Takeda JP 4502 Takeda ups bid to GBP49/share (£27.26 cash, £21.75 shares). Decision deadline extended to May 8. 1.5% 60%
24-Apr-18 Shire UK SHP Takeda JP 4502 Takeda ups bid to GBP47/share and increases cash component -1.0%
20-Apr-18 Shire UK INTU Allergan UK AGN Allergan confirmed that it does not intend to make an offer for Shire -3.0%
19-Apr-18 Shire UK SHP Takeda JP 4502 Takeda confimed cash & shares offer to acquire Shire @ GBP46.50/share 6.0% 50%
18-Apr-18 INTU Properties UK INTU Hammerson UK HMSO Hammerson board withdraws takeover recommendation for INTU -6.0%
16-Apr-18 Whitbread UK WTB Elliott Advisors US Activist investor Elliott Advisors takes a 6% stake 7.0%
13-Apr-18 Hammerson UK HMSO Klepierre FR EPA Klapierre calls off effort to buy -9.0%
12-Apr-18 Norwegian Air NO NAS Int. Cons. Airlines UK IAG IAG taken 4.6% stake and interested in siscussing a takeover 45.0%
12-Apr-18 FirstGroup UK FGP Apollo Priv Equity US FirstGroup rejects all cash offer from private equity group Apollo 8.0%
11-Apr-18 Hammerson UK HMSO Klepierre FR EPA Klepierre raises offer by 3% 1.0% 47%
28-Mar-18 Shire UK SHP Takeda JP 4502 Takeda says condering making an approach 14.0%
27-Mar-18 Novartis CH NOVN GlaxoSmithKline UK GSK GSK agrees to buy-out Novartis’ 36.5% stake in their Consumer Healthcare JV for $13bn cash 6.4%
26-Mar-18 Purplebricks UK PURP Axel Springer DE Axel Springer buys £125m/11.5% stake -10.0%
26-Mar-18 Finish Line US FINL JD Sports Fashion UK JD. JD Sports acquires Jinish Line for $13.5/share or $558m 28.0%
20-Mar-18 Fenner UK FENR Michelin FR ML Fenner agrees to be acquired for 610p/share (£1.2bn) 25.0% 31%
19-Mar-18 Hammerson UK HMSO Klepierre FR EPA Hammerson rejects ‘opportunistic’ 615p 50/50 cash/share offer from Klepierre 28.0% 40%
19-Mar-18 GKN UK GKN Melrose Industries UK MRO Melrose sweetens latest 467p offer with £1bn pension injection -0.7% 43%
16-Mar-18 NEX Group UK NXG CME US CME NEX confirms a preliminary takeover approach from US trading giant CME Group 36.0%
14-Mar-18 Prudential UK PRU To demerge Uk business (M&G Prudential) from US & Asian operations 5.0%
13-Mar-18 French Connection UK FCCN Unnamed US FCCN discloses unsolicited US approach last year 22.0%
12-Mar-18 GKN UK GKN Melrose Industries UK MRO MRO makes final offer of 467p, (81p cash, 1.69 shares) -2.5% 43%
09-Mar-18 GKN UK GKN Dana US DANA Proposed merger of GKN Driveline with Dana Inc. Could thwart Melrose hostile takeover 3.0%
06-Mar-18 Smurfit Kappa UK SKG Int. Paper US IP SKG rejects undisclosed cash + share approach from US competitor International Paper 20.0%
05-Mar-18 Sparton UK ULE Ultra Electronics UK ULE Anti-trust torpedoes ULE’s takeover of US Sparton -10.0%
28-Feb-18 Laird UK LRD Advent Int. US Laird agrees to £1bn takeover from Private Equity firm Advent 73.0% 73%
27-Feb-18 Sky UK SKY Comcast US CMCSA Comcast makes rival 1250p bid for Sky (& Fox assets), 16% more than 21CFox bid 22.0% 14%
23-Feb-18 Standard Life Aberdeen UK SLA Phoenix Grp Hldgs UK PHNX Sells 80% of insurance business for £2.8bn cash -2.5%
20-Feb-18 Fidessa UK FDSA Temenos SWISS TEMN Fidessa agrees to £1.4bn takeover from Swiss rival at 3567p/shr 37.0% 22%
13-Feb-18 Triton Digital Canada CA Audioboom UK BOOM BOOM intends to buy Triton for $185m cash
05-Feb-18 Northern & Shell UK Trinity Mirror UK TNI Talks to buy certain assets (inc. Daily Express) of publisher Northern & Shell continuing
02-Feb-18 Liberty Global US LIB Vodafone UK VOD Vodafone in talks to buy Liberty assets in Europe in a deal that may exceed €14bn (FT)
24-Jan-18 London Stock Exchange UK LSE US Rival Sky: Activit investor TCI told investors consolidation inevitable; typical premium implies £15bn+ 5.0% 15%
17-Jan-18 UBM UK UBM Informa UK INF INF and UBM propose combo; UBM shareholders to receive 1.083 INF shares + 163p cash 16.0% 30%
17-Jan-18 GKN UK GKN Melrose Industries UK MRO Melrose ups offer to 430p after its ownshare price rises  (81p cash, 1.49 new shares) 1.0% 32%
15-Jan-18 GKN UK GKN Melrose Industries UK MRO Melrose attack document suggests it may be prepared to make hostile takover 4.0%
12-Jan-18 GKN UK GKN Melrose Industries UK MRO Melrose confirms informal approach at 405p/shares (81p cash, 1.49 new shares) 26.0% 24%
27-Dec-17 IWG UK IWG Canadian Priv Equity CA IWG confirms takeover approach from Candaian PE firms Brookfield and Onex 30.0%
22-Dec-17 Ladbrokes Coral UK LCL GVC Holdings UK GVC Ladbrokes finally agrees to a takeover from GVC for £3.2-4bn 5.5% 40%
22-Dec-17 Ladbrokes Coral UK LCL GVC Holdings UK GVC GVC and Ladbrokes confirm in merger talks. LCL to get 160-200p/share 29.0% 19-35%
21-Dec-17 Vodafone UK VOD Liberty Global US LBTYK FT reports Liberty Austrian sale in Europe re-opens door to Vodafone deal talks 1.5%
06-Dec-17 INTU Properties UK INTU Hammerson UK HMSO Hammerson makes £3.4bn all share offer for INTU 21.5% 28%
29-Nov-17 Regal Entertainment US RGC Cineworld UK CINE Cineworld confirms $3.1bn/$23 per share (43% prem) offer for Regal in reverse takeover 9.0% 43%
28-Nov-17 Regal Entertainment US RGC Cineworld UK CINE Reuters notes specualtion about a merger 7.0%
21-Nov-17 Imperial Brands UK IMB Japan Tobacco Japan 2914.T Executive favourable to acquisitions is made new JT CEO, fueling talk of a potential takeover of IMB 4.0%
15-Nov-17 TalkTalk UK TALK Sector peers After another profits warning, Raymond James says consolidation unavoidable, TALK a target
14-Nov-17 Gocompare.com UK GOCO ZPG ZPG UK Gocompare rejects a 110p bid from Zoopla parent ZPG as the bid ‘undervalues’ the company 10.0% 19%
07-Nov-17 SSE UK SSE Inogy DE SSE in Talks with Innogy to Create New Energy Supply Company 3.0%
13-Oct-17 Aldermore UK ALD FirstRand SA FSR ALD confirms received proposal from FirstRand regarding possible offer for entire share capital 20.0% 22%
09-Oct-17 Millenium & Copthorne Hotels UK MLC City Developments SG CDL CDL proposes to buy rest of shares it doesn’t already own 22.0% 21%
27-Sep-17 Carillion UK CLLN Middle Eastern Inv CityAM reports ME investor wants to buy Carillion shares for access to London listing 20.0%
25-Sep-17 Imagination Tech UK IMG Canyon Bridge Capital US SU Deal agreed at £550m or 182p/share 30.0% 42%
25-Sep-17 Carver SK PRIV Unilever UK ULVR Uilever pays $2.7bn for South Korean skin-care company -1.0%
22-Sep-17 AstraZeneca UK AZN N/A Bernstein says investors wrong to write-off off the chances of another takeover approach 3.0%
05-Sep-17 Aveva UK AVV Schneider Electric FR SU Reverse takeover. SE £550m cash (858p/share); AV £100m cash (156p) = 1014p for AVV + 40% new grp 25.0%
24-Jul-17 B&M European Retail UK BME Asda (Wal-Mart) US WMT Reports suggest Asda are readying a £4.4bn bid for value retailer B&M (Sunday Times)
19-Jul-17 Reckitt Benckiser UK RB. McCormick & Co US MKC McCormick to purchase Reckitt’s food business, including French’s Mustard, for $4.2bn 1.4%
10-Jul-17 eSure UK ESUR Direct Line Group UK DLG eSure investigating takeover options, including founder’s former company Direct Line (FT Alphaville)
07-Jul-17 Centrica UK CNA Various WallStreetWires reports several buyers could be interested in British Gas owner around 300/share 3.0% 45%
05-Jul-17 Worldpay UK WPG Vantiv US VNTV WPG & Vantic confirms terms of deal; 55p cash + 0.0672 new Vantiv shares = 385p/share -5.0% 20%
04-Jul-17 Worldpay UK WPG Vantiv US VNTV WPG confirms approach 27.0%
19-Jun-17 Tesco UK TSCO Amazon US AMZN HSBC says #1 Uk grocer  TSCO would be best option for AMZN
16-Jun-17 Morrison UK MRW Amazon US AMZN Existing partner Morrison could be target if Amazon wants to increase UK market presence
18-May-17 Berendsen UK BRSN Elis FR ELIS Berendsen rebuffs a revised £2bn takeover offer 30.0% 38%
17-May-17 Colgate-Palmolive US CL Unilever UK ULVR After reports Colgate up for sale, Societe Generale suggest Unilever acquisition would be ‘game-changer’
04-May-17 Jimmy Choo UK CHOO Coach US COH Analysts at HSBC suggest CHOO could be a takeover target for Coach 1.0%
31-Mar-17 Shawbrook UK SHAW Pollen Street Capial UK Private equity group make formal £842m offer for Shawbrook at 332.7p/share (FT) 8.0% 6%
16-Mar-17 Vodafone UK VOD Liberty Global US LBTYK Reports surface suggesting the two companies could once again be negotiating merger (The Register) 12.0% 15%
13-Mar-17 Amec Foster Wheeler UK AMFW Wood Group UK WG. Wood Group launches £2.2bn takeover of Amec, with offer being recommended by board (FT) 12.0% 15%
13-Mar-17 Bovis Homes UK BVS Galliford Try UK GFRD Bovis  turns down first offer of merger with Galliford, however talks are ongoing for £2.5bn deal (FT) 11.0% 7%
13-Mar-17 Bovis Homes UK BVS Redrow UK RDW Bovis Homes rejects offer from Redrow for business (FT)
06-Mar-17 Aberdeen Asset Management UK ADN Standard Life UK SL. Standard Life buys Aberdeen for £3.8bn making Europe’s 2nd largest fund manager (FT) 4.4% 0%
17-Feb-17 Unilever UK ULVR Kraft-Heinz US KHC Unilever rejects takeover bid from Kraft at £40/shr, however Kraft will work towards agreement (FT) 12.0% 25%
07-Feb-17 Ithaca Energy UK IAE Delek Group ISR DLEKG North Sea oil explorer agrees $1.24bn takeover by Israel’s Delek Group (FT) 10.0% 12%
02-Feb-17 Mead Johnson US MJN Reckitt Benckiser UK RB. In advanced talks to acquire the US infant formula producer Mead Johnson for $16.7bn (FT) 30%
27-Jan-17 Booker Group UK BOK Tesco UK TSCO Agrees £3.7bn acquisition of businesses, creating UK’s largest food retailer 19.5% 12%
24-Jan-17 ITV UK ITV Amazon US AMZN Major shareholders of ITV have been approached by Apple, Amazon and Netflix about 300p/share offer 9.5% 52%
24-Jan-17 UK ITV Apple AAPL valuing the UK TV company at £12bn (Evening Standard)
24-Jan-17 UK ITV Netflix NFLX
13-Jan-17 Acacia Mining UK ACA Endeavour CA EDV Acacia says in early talks with Endeavour Mining about a possible £3bn merger; said may or may not result in a deal 3.5%
14-Dec-16 Punch Taverns UK PUB Heineken NL HEIA Saw off rival offer from former exec. with £400m takeover bid (FT) 42.0% 37%
14-Dec-17 Sky UK SKY Disney US DIS Disney makes offer for 21 C Fox Entertainment assets, incl Sky 2.8% 9%
13-Dec-16 Sky UK SKY 21 C FOX US FOX 21CF said to offer 1075p/share to take control of SKY 26.0% 40%
09-Dec-16 Ladbrokes Coral UK LCL GVC Holdings UK GVC FT speculation that a £3.2bn tie-up with GVC was on the cards 5.5% 40%
21-Oct-16 Reynolds American US RAI Brit. Am. Tobacco UK BATS BATS said to offer $56.5/share for the 57.8% stake it doesn’t already own. Merger 15.3% 20%
22-Sep-16 TUIFly DE TUI easyJet UK EZJ EZJ close to taking a stake in TUIFly to secure flying rights in Europe (Reuters)
15-Sep-16 Penton Info Services US Priv Informa UK INF INF announces £1.18bn acquisition of Penton Information Services to increase US exposure 2.7%
08-Sep-16 HP Entreprises US HPE Micro Focus UK MCRO MCRO says to acquire HP Entreprise Software for $808bn in reverse takeover 15.0%
18-Aug-16 BT UK BT/A Various This is Money cites City sources suggesting Brexit and weak GBP makes BT a takeover target 2.0%
10-Aug-16 Entertainment One UK ETO ITV UK ITV ITV makes preliminary 236p (£1bn) bid for ETO. 10.0% 10%
09-Aug-16 William Hill UK WMH 888 / Rank Group UK 888 / RNK William Hill rejects $4.2bn offer from Rank Group and 888 Holdings (BBG) 9.0% 16%
28-Jul-16 AstraZeneca UK AZN Novartis CH NOVN CEO Pascal Soriot tells analysts an improving pipeline makes it more attractive to potential buyers 7.0%
27-Jul-16 AstraZeneca UK AZN Novartis CH NOVN Citi anaylsts say a NOV/AZN combination would help the Swiss giant gain critical mass 1.0% 48%
18-Jul-16 ARM Holdings UK ARM SoftBank JP 9984 SoftBank to buy ARM for £23.4bn (FT) 43.0% 43%
13-Jul-16 Poundland UK PLND Steinhoff SA Steinhoff offers 220p/share for full takeover 13.0% 13%
15-Jun-16 Poundland UK PLND Steinhoff SA South African retail investor Steinhoff says it has acquired a 23% stake in the budget retailer 30.0%
14-Jun-16 Premier Farnell UK PFL Datwyler Holding US Both companies reached a deal for 165p per share or $1bn (Company webeitse) 51.0% 51%
31-May-16 Alliance Trust UK ATST Rothschild UK RIT Alliance Trust gets merger approach from Lord Rochschild’s RIT Capital Partners (Source: ATST) 2.5%
23-Mar-16 Premier Foods UK PFD McCormick & Co US MKC Premier Foods rejects 52p cash per share bid from McCormick & Company (Source: PFD) 65.0% 65%
22-Mar-16 Imagination Tech UK IMG Apple US AAPL Apple confirms held talks with Imagination Technology but no plans to make an offer (Source: Apple) 20.0%
08-Mar-16 Burberry UK BRBY Unknown FT reports suggest a mystery investor has bought a 5% stake in the company  (Source: FT) 7.0%
01-Mar-16 London Stock Exchange UK LSE Int. Cont Exchange US ICE ICE and CME Group could issue competing bids 7.0%
23-Feb-16 London Stock Exchange UK LSE Deutsche Boerse DE DB1 LSE announces in talks to merge with DB1 (Source: LSE and BD) 15.0%
25-Jan-16 Cable & Wireless UK CWC Liberty Global US LBTYK CWC announces it has reached an agreement with LBTYK regarding terms of acquisition 1.0%
5-Jan-16 Home Retail UK HOME Sainsbury UK SBRY SBRY confirms it made a cash + shares approach in Nov which was rejected 40.0%
17-Dec-15 Acerta US AstraZeneca UK AZN FT reports AZN has agreed to buy a 55% stake in Acerta with option to take full control for up to $7bn
24-Nov-15 Falkland Oil & Gas UK FOGL Rockhopper UK RKH Falkland Oil and Gas  to be acquired. Shareholders to receive RKH shares. Deal worth £57.1m 4.7% 11%
20-Nov-15 Imperial Tobacco UK IMT Brit. Am. Tobacco UK BATS FT Alphaville reports that BATS has been putting together finacing for a full takeover of IMT 2.0%
16-Nov-15 Premier Oil UK PMO Norske Oljeselska NO PMO cuts exposure to North Sea with sale of $120m in assets using proceeds to reduce debt 7.0%
6-Nov-15 ZS Pharma US ZSPH AstraZeneca UK AZN AZN agrees to buy ZSPH in  move to bolster protfolio ahead of loss of patent protection on best selling drug 42%
3-Nov-15 Dyax US DYAX Shire UK SHP Shire to Acquire Dyax for $37.7/share or $5.9bn, with unwavering focus on mid-size acquisitions
28-Oct-15 EE UK BT UK BT/A BT-EE £12.5bn merger cleared by Competition and Markets Authority 3.5%
5-Oct-15 APR Energy UK APR Consortuim Confirms approach by a consortium of investors regarding a takeover 88.0%
5-Oct-15 Glencore UK GLEN SWF, Pensions Daily Telegraph: Company says open to takeover offers, but doubts buyers will offer fair price 10.0%
5-Oct-15 Xchanging UK XCH Capita UK CPI Company says target of two competing bids from CPI and Apollo Group (US) 50.0% 50%
30-Sep-15 Darty UK DRTY FNAC FR FNAC Reuters reports FNAC makes offer of 101p/share for UK listed Darty 15.0% 27%
28-Sep-15 Vodafone UK VOD Liberty Global US LBTYA Liberty walks away from asset swap discussions -4.0%
21-Sep-15 RSA Insurance UK RSA Zurich SW ZURN Zurich walks away from RSA deal -21.0%
17-Sep-15 Guardian Fn Servs UK Priv Phoenix Grp Hldgs UK PHNX PHNX confirms rumours it has begun non-exclusive talks about acquiring Guardian Financial Services. 5.0%
16-Sep-15 SABMiller UK SAB AB InBev US BUD FT reports AB InBev approaches SABMiller to explore $250bn tie-up 20.0%
8-Sep-15 Amlin UK AML Mitsui Sumitomo JP 8316 Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance Company bids 670p/share (+ Oct’s 8.4p div) equating to £3.5bn 33.6% 36%
3-Sep-15 WM Morrison UK MRW Brait SA Telegraph reports Brait chief Christo Wiese eyeing expansion into UK supermarket sector 5.0%
1-Sep-15 Steritech US Rentokil UK RTO Rentokil buys US pest control business Steritech for $425m
26-Aug-15 Betfair UK BET Paddy Power UK PLSA Reached agreement on terms of $8bn merger 19.5%
11-Aug-15 Bwin.Party UK BPTY 888 UK 888 BWIN confirms received revised proposal from 888
10-Aug-15 Partnership Assurance UK PA Just Retirement UK JRG Agreed to £670m merger with PA getting 0.834 new JRG shares or 166p/share 8%
10-Aug-15 CRH UK/IRE CRH On the look out for more acquisitions after $6.5bn binge on assets from Lafarge and Holcim
07-Aug-15 Tethys Petroleum CA TPL Nostrum Oil & Gas UK NOG NOG mulling $50m bid for TPL; C$0.2185 per TPL share 56%
6-Aug-15 Bwin.Party UK BPTY GVC Holdings UK GVC GVC confirms fully funded £1bn bid (25p cash + 0.231 new GVC shares)
4-Aug-15 GlaxoSmithKline UK GSK Pfizer US PFE Media reports  (Telegraph, This is Money) that PFE might consider a £19 share & cash offer 1.5%
3-Aug-15 Baxalta US BXLT Shire UK SHP SHP offers 0.1687/share to create $34bn tie-up and leading global biotech focused on rare diseases -11.0% 36%
30-Jul-15 Dragon Oil UK DGO ENOC UAE ENOC ENOC increases bid again, this time to 800p 10.0% 10%
28-Jul-15 Chime Communications UK CHW WPP UK WPP CHW confirms in talks with WPP and Providence Equity about a 365p per share  offer 25.0% 34%
28-Jul-15 Melrose Industries UK MRO Honeywell US HON Reuters reports Melrose to sell its Elster division to Honeywell for $5.1bn 16.0%
28-Jul-15 RSA Insurance UK RSA Zurich SW ZURN Zurich said it is weighing up a bid for British rival RSA Insurance Group; deal likely in cash 12.0%
28-Jul-15 Boehringer Ingelheim DE BING Hikma Pharma. UK HIK Acquires Roxannes Laboratories from BING for $2.65bn in cash and shares 10.0%
27-Jul-15 Fokker Technologies NL GKN UK GKN GKN says  it will buy Fokker for €706 million (including debt) from private-equity owner Arle Capital 7.0%
24-Jul-15 Bwin.Party UK BPTY GVC Holdings UK GVC Reports suggest GVC has made new proposal for Bwin with £1bn/125p bid
23-Jul-15 Coral UK Ladbrokes UK LAD Ladbrokes to merge with Gala Coral in deal to make £2.1bn revenue group -3.0%
20-Jul-15 FT Group UK PSON Nikkei JP Pearson top sell FT Group to Nikkei for £844m 2.0%
17-Jul-15 Aveva UK AVV Schneider Elec FR SU Aveva agrees to a reverse takeover with Schneider Electric 30.0%
9-Jul-15 Bwin.Party UK BPTY 888 UK 888 888 & BWIN agree cash and share offer of 39.45p and 0.40488 share sin 888 (105p)
23-Jun-15 Bwin.Party UK BPTY GVC Holdings UK GVC BWIN confirms 110p/share offer from GVC involving cash and shares 10%
22-Jun-15 Ladbrokes UK LAD Gala Coral UK Priv LAD confirms in discussions with Gala Coral regarding a possible merger 5.0%
22-Jun-15 SKY UK SKY Vodafone UK VOD Reports suggest the Murdoch family has rejected two approaches for its stake in Sky 1.5%
22-Jun-15 SKY UK SKY Vivendi FR VIV Reports suggest the Murdoch family has rejected two approaches for its stake in Sky 1.5%
22-Jun-15 Severn Trent UK SVT Borealis Infra. CA Priv Canadian firm Borealis Infrastructure considering £5bn bid, 2yrs after previous approach rejected 2.7%
16-Jun-15 Thorntons UK THT Fererro IT Priv THT agrees to 145p bid from the Italian chocolatier 43%
15-Jun-15 GlaxoSmithKline UK GSK Roche SW ROG Daily mail reports Swiss Roche and US J&J eyeing up the UK-pharma giant 1.0%
9-Jun-15 Dragon Oil UK DGO ENOC UAE ENOC ENOC sweetens deal to 750p 2%
8-Jun-15 Vedanta UK VED Cairn India IN Press speculation (Telegraph) or merger of two subsidiaries; Vedanta Ltd and Cairn India 7.0%
8-Jun-15 Diageo UK DGE 3G Capital BZ Speculation in Brazilian newspaper Veja that 3G interested in bid (with BUD?) 8.0%
1-Jun-15 Actelion CH ATLN Shire UK SHP Sundays Times reports ATLN rebuffed a £12bn approach by SHP 10.0%
21-May-15 Plus500 UK PLUS Playtech UK PTEC Playtech agreed to buy PLUS for £459.6m; 400p cash per share 12%
20-May-15 Dragon Oil UK DGO ENOC UAE ENOC Considering possible cash offer of 735p for the remaining 46% 47%
11-May-15 Vodafone UK VOD Liberty Global US LBTYA Liberty’s Malone says VOD could be a good fit 5.0%
8-May-15 Spirit Pub UK SPRT Greene King UK GNK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) says deal will substantially lessen sector competition
7-May-15 Menulog AU/NZ Just Eat UK JE> Just eat gobbles up counterpart for £445m -4.0%
23-Apr-15 Telecity UK TCY Equinix US TCY Equinix makes £2.3bn cash and shares offer 21.0% 27%
8-Apr-15 Pace UK PIC Arris US ARRS British set-top box maker agreed to be bought by Arris Group for $2.1bn in stock and cash. 35.0% 28%
25-Mar-15 BG Group UK BG. Royal Dutch Shell UK RDSa Media reports Shell agrees to buy BG Group for £47B 37.0% 50%
16-Mar-15 SABMiller UK SAB AB InBev US BUD Media reports 3G bid for KRFT reduces chance of a BUD bid for SAB -1.0%
12-Mar-15 Dragon Oil UK DGO ENOC UAE ENOC ENOC announces intention to make an approach; no price given 5.0%
6-Mar-15 TSB UK TSB Sabadell ES SABE Sabadell proposes a bid of 340p/share subject to reaching agreement on t&c of an offer (Reuters) 26.0% 29%
18-Feb-15 Weir Group UK WEIR Priv Equity Reuters cites speculation (Daily Telegraph, Mail) of £25/share breakup offer. 5.0%
16-Feb-15 De La Rue UK DLAR Oberthur UK OCS Bid speculation from Oberthur and un-named Private equity house mentioned in in UK press
11-Feb-15 888 Holdings UK 888 William Hill UK WMH Talks collapse -21.5%
11-Feb-15 Lonmin UK LMI Glencore UK GLEN GLEN says selling 23.9% stake in LMI
10-Feb-15 Interxion US INXN Telecity UK TCY Telecity agrees to buy INXN to create £3bn euro Dominant server host 16.0% 15%
5-Feb-15 888 Holdings UK 888 William Hill UK WMH 888 confirms received approach about possible offer from WMH 18.0%
5-Feb-15 Rexam UK REX Ball Corp US BLL REX reveals in talks with American packaging supplier about 610p/share deal 24.0%
30-Jan-15 EE UK BT UK BT/A BT Agrees to buy EE for £12.5bn 5.4%
27-Jan-15 IAG UK IAG Qataris Take 10% stake
12-Jan-15 Aer Lingus IRE AERL IAG UK IAG Aer Lingus to recommend offer
18-Dec-14 NPS Pharma US NPSP Shire UK SHP Companies agreed to merger with Shire acquiring NPS for $46/share cash ($5.2bn) 20.0% 51%
16-Dec-14 Aer Lingus IRE AERL IAG UK IAG Aer Lingus rebuffs IAG preliminary approach 20.0%
8-Dec-14 Orange FR ORA BT UK BT/A BT says entered into exclusive talks with Orange and Deutsche Telekom to buy EE 2.0%
2-Dec-14 Sainsbury UK SBRY Crystal Amber UK CRSL UK activist fund in talks with investors about buying SBRY shares (Sun Telegraph) 3.0%
2-Dec-14 Friends Life UK FLG Aviva UK AV. AV offers 0.74 new Aviva shares for each FLG; equates to 394p/shares 15%
1-Dec-14 BP UK BP/ Royal Dutch Shell UK RDSb Speculation of RDS buying BP 4.0%
1-Dec-14 Petroceltic Int UK PCI Dragon Oil UK DGO DGO drops bid on weak commodity prices -34.0%
1-Dec-14 Morgan Advanced Mat UK MGAMM Vesuvius UK VSVS VSVS says MGAMM rejected preliminary offer; does not now intend to bid 4.0%
26-Nov-14 Balfour Beatty UK BBY John Laing Infra. UK JLIF JLIF offers £1bn for public private partnership assets (educ, health) 5.0%
24-Nov-14 EE UK BT UK BT/A EE confirms in talks with BT about acquisition
21-Nov-14 O2 UK BT UK BT/A BT confirms in talks to buy EE or O2
21-Nov-14 Salamander Energy UK SMDR Ophir Energy UK OPHR OPHR proposes all share acquisition worth 0.5719 OPHR shares or 115.9p/share 45%
14-Nov-14 Friends Life UK FLG Aviva UK AV. FLG confirms reached agreement on terms of deal for FLG to merge with AV 5.0%
12-Nov-14 Salamander Energy UK SMDR Consortium SMDR confirms 121p/share offer from Compania Espanola de Petroleos (Spain) 20.0%
11-Nov-14 Bwin.Party UK BPTY Company confirmed in talks with interested parties 10.0%
11-Nov-14 United Utilities UK UU Telegraph cites renewed interest from Canadian Teachers Pension Fund /Kuwait Inv 2.0%
7-Nov-14 InterContinental Hotels UK IHG FT says activist investor urges comb with Marriot/Starwood/Hilton 4.0%
5-Nov-14 ITV UK ITV Guardian cites Liberum research on M&A in Australia
5-Nov-14 Tullow Oil UK TLW ONGC Videsh IN Telegraph cites 6yr lows and regular takeover chatter 2.0%
5-Nov-14 United Utilities UK UU Telegraph cites interest from Ontario Teachers Pension Plan 3.0%
3-Nov-14 Vodafone UK VOD AT&T US T Telegraph cites UBS research that VOD could be bought by AT&T/Softbank
3-Nov-14 Ocado UK OCDO Reuters cites ongoing speculation 10.0%
29-Oct-14 Salamander Energy UK SMDR Ophir Energy UK OPHR Ophir confirms approach but no details
29-Oct-14 Anglo American UK GLEN Glencore-Xstrata UK GLEN Express cites AAL mooted as target for giant GLEN 3.7%
27-Oct-14 TalkTalk UK TALK Vodafone UK VOD Express says VOD lining up bid for TalkTalk 1.0%
27-Oct-14 Salamander Energy UK SMDR Ophir Energy UK OPHR Salamander confirms approach from OPHR and Compania Espanola de Petrolas 21.0%
21-Oct-14 SkyItalia/Medisat IT BSkyB UK BSY Telegraph says Bernstein says BSY could merge SkyItalia with Mediset
20-Oct-14 Croda UK CRDA Priv Equity FT cites speculation of private equity interest in the sector 1.8%
15-Oct-14 Spirit Pub UK SPRT Greene King UK GNK GNK offers SPRT shareholders a revised 109.5p/share (0.1322 GNK + 8p/share) 10.0%
6-Oct-14 CSR UK CSR Qualcomm US QCOM QCOm offers 900p/share 33.0% 57%
6-Oct-14 Petroceltic Int UK PCI Dragon Oil UK DGO After speculation, PCI declares in detailed discussions with DGO 20.0%
6-Oct-14 ASOS UK ASC Amazon US AMZN UBS: ASC could be target as online fashion gets more competitive; 5000p/share 5.0%
3-Oct-14 Rio Tinto UK RIO Glencore-Xstrata UK GLEN Bloomberg says GLEN laying groundwork for merger; rebuffed 10.0%
23-Sep-14 Debenhams UK DEB Sports Direct UK SPD SPD spent £33m buying another 5% 3.0%
16-Sep-14 Spirit Pub UK SPRT Greene King UK GNK GNK confirms bid approach which SPRT rejected; FT says offer was 100p 15.0%
15-Sep-14 Rio Tinto UK RIO Glencore-Xstrata UK GLEN FT reports that RIO is better option than buying AAL 1.0%
15-Sep-14 SABMiller UK SAB AB InBev US BUD AB Inbev talking to banks about financing a £75 billion buyout (marketwatch) 13.2%
2-Sep-14 Heineken NL HEIA SAB Miller UK SAB SAB approached Heineken but was rejected (source Heineken) 13.2%
2-Sep-14 Tesco UK TSCO Wal-Mart US WMT Media speculation that Tesco could be a takeover target for Wal-Mart 1.0%
2-Sep-14 ARM Holdings UK ARM Media speculation that ARM could be a takeover target 1.0%
2-Sep-14 Vodafone UK VOD SoftBank JP Speculation from Nikkei suggesting that VOD could be target for SoftBank 1.5%
1-Sep-14 Anglo American UK AAL AAL CEO says the company are open to takeover offers 3.0%
1-Sep-14 Perform UK PER AI PG UK AI to aquire Perform for £392.99m in cash 24.8% 21%
20-Aug-14 ITV UK ITV Liberty Global US LBTYK Media reports that Liberty Global could swoop for ITV 3.5%
18-Aug-14 Actavis US ACT Pfizer US PFE PFE to explore alternatives to AZN, targets include ACT
11-Aug-14 Family Dollar Stores US FDO Dollar General US DG DG proposed to acquire FDO for $78.50 per share in cash 9%
1-Aug-14 Balfour Beatty UK BBY Carillion UK CLLN BBY rejects increased offer. CLLN now withdrawn offer
31-Jul-14 GlaxoSmithKline UK GSK Pfizer US PFE FT reports Bernstein saying 20% slump makes GSK vulnerable
29-Jul-14 Balfour Beatty UK BBY Carillion UK CLLN BBY walks away from merger talks -5/-7%
25-Jul-14 AstraZeneca UK AZN Pfizer US PFE Media reports Pfizer says still looking at deals including big ones
25-Jul-14 Balfour Beatty UK BBY Carillion UK CLLN Companies comfirm in talks about £3bn merger 8-13%
18-Jul-14 Sainsbury UK SBRY Qataris Media revived spculation 4.8%
17-Jul-14 Shire UK SHP AbbVie US ABBV Merger agreed at 5248p (2444p cash and 0.866 Abbvie shares 42%
16-Jul-14 ITV UK ITV Liberty Global US LBTYA Bought 6.4% stake from BSkyB 9.3% 1%
16-Jul-14 Meggitt UK MGGT United Tech. US UTX Daily Mail reports potential for 625p/shareoffer 9.0%
14-Jul-14 Time Warner US TWX 21C Fox US FOX Variety says $80bn or $85/share offer in past few weeks rejected 15.8% 25%
14-Jul-14 SABMiller UK SAB AB InBev US BUD Media reports ABINbev could acquire fellow brewer (recurrent) 2.9%
23-Jun-14 Shire UK SHP AbbVie US ABBV Offer upped to 5320p/share 3.1% 42%
19-Jun-14 Kentz UK KENZ SNC-Lavalin CAN £975.92m acquisition confirmed 33.0% 28%
5-Jun-14 Shire UK SHP AbbVie US ABBV £4626p/share offer rejected 20.0% 31%
28-May-14 Centrica UK CAN Qataris Speculation lined up big lnes of stock at 400p+ (This is money) 1.3%
27-May-14 Smith & Nephew UK SN. Stryker US SYK Speculation of bid; denied 15.0%
27-May-14 InterContinental Hotels UK IHG US £6bn approach from US accoring to Sky News 6.3%
22-May-14 Sainsbury UK SBRY Qataris Speculation of takeover revived from time to time
20-May-14 ARM Holdings UK ARM US Tech giant Google put aside $30BN for takeovers 7.0%
19-May-14 Aeroflex US ARX Cobham UK COB $10.5/share or $900m 26%
15-May-14 AstraZeneca UK AZN Pfizer US PFE Offer rejected 1.5% -15%
13-May-14 Carphone Warehouse UK CPW Dixons Retail UK DXNS €3.7bn merger of equals confirmed 1.6%
6-May-14 AstraZeneca UK AZN Pfizer US PFE Offer rejected
2-May-14 Carphone Warehouse UK CPW Dixons Retail UK DXNS €3.7bn merger of equals talks ongoing 4% (both)
30-Apr-14 AstraZeneca UK AZN Pfizer US PFE Offer rejected 35%
30-Apr-14 Shire UK SHP Pfizer US PFE Daily Mail, FT, SocGen analysts 3.5%
30-Apr-14 Heritage Oil UK HOIL Quatari Royals Heritage reports offer made 25%
29-Apr-14 BG Group UK BG. Exxon/Chevron US XOM/CVX 3.0%
29-Apr-14 Shire UK SHP Allergan US AGN Reuters 3.0%
25-Apr-14 Wolfson Microelectronics UK WLF Cirrus Logic US CRUS 74%
20-Apr-14 Tate &Lyle UK TATE Bunge US BG Sharecast 20%
15-Apr-14 AstraZeneca UK AZN Pfizer US PFE Sunday Times 26%
28-Mar-14 Caracal Energy UK CRCL Glencore-Xstrata UK GLEN Glencore to buy for 550p/share 59%
10-Mar-14 Manroy UK MAN Herstal BE Goes with Herstal; Beretta and 52%
24-Feb-14 Fyffes UK FFE Chiquita US CQB Merger talks ongoing 59%
18-Feb-14 Carphone Warehouse UK CPW Dixons Retail UK DXNS Merger talks ongoing 9% (both)
28-Jan-14 Probability UK PBTY Gtech IT GTK All cash takeover 59%
27-Jan-14 F&C Asset Management UK FCAM Bank of Montreal CA BMO Confirmed approach 31%
5-Jan-14 Vodafone UK VOD AT&T US T AT&T declares no approach for 6 months
5-Jan-14 AstraZeneca UK AZN Pfizer US PFE PFE press release from 28-4-14 30%
2-Jan-14 Utilities UK Attraction of bond-like, inflation-linked returns
5-Dec-13 Snacktime UK SNAK Uvenko UK Talks terminated 19/2/14 43.0%
26-Nov-13 AZ Electronics UK AZEM Merck KgAA DE MRK GR Deal ongoing 52%
17-May-13 Manroy UK MAN Herstal BE Talks with 3 buyers; US Ordanace exits, Herstal & Beratta stay 43.0%
20-Jan-13 Assura Group UK AGR Medicx Fund Ltd UK MXF Ongoing 10%
16-Jan-13 Vodafone UK VOD Verizon Comms US V Verizon to acquire VD outright
14-Nov-12 Tui Travel UK TT Tui AG DE TUI GR Renewed
2-Nov-12 Britivic UK BVIC AG Barr UK BAG All share merger 0%
2011-13 Goldbridges Global Resources UK GBGR African Resources Offer to buy 60% 66%
2011 GulfKeystone Petroleum UK GKP Oil Majors Often touted as prey for oil majors wanting access to Kurdistan

*The above does not represent an exhaustive list of deals and/or speculation relating to UK listed companies

Back to Top

This research is produced by Accendo Markets Limited. Research produced and disseminated by Accendo Markets is classified as non-independent research, and is therefore a marketing communication. This investment research has not been prepared in accordance with legal requirements designed to promote its independence and it is not subject to the prohibition on dealing ahead of the dissemination of investment research. This research does not constitute a personal recommendation or offer to enter into a transaction or an investment, and is produced and distributed for information purposes only.


Accendo Markets considers opinions and information contained within the research to be valid when published, and gives no warranty as to the investments referred to in this material. The income from the investments referred to may go down as well as up, and investors may realise losses on investments. The past performance of a particular investment is not necessarily a guide to its future performance.

Spread bets and CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage.
Spread bets and CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 67% of retail investor accounts lose money when spread betting and/or trading CFDs with this provider. You should consider whether you understand how spread bets and CFDs work and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money.
.