- Cash offer trumps Tritax deal
- Board backs latest proposal
- Tritax considering its options
The tug-of-war over logistics property firm Warehouse REIT (WHR) shows no sign of letting up, as Blackstone flexed its muscles with a fresh cash offer valuing the group at £489 million or 115p per share.
The Warehouse REIT stock price was almost unchanged at 115.3p suggesting investors had already assumed the bid battle would continue.
BOARD BACKS ALL-CASH OFFER
The latest all-cash proposal from US buyout giant Blackstone, which includes July’s dividend, tops last month’s offer of cash and shares from Tritax Big Box (BBOX), which at the time was worth 114.2p per share (including July and October’s dividends) but based on closing prices on 9 July was worth 111.1p per share.
The Warehouse REIT board said it considered the terms of the increased Blackstone offer to be ‘fair and reasonable’ and as such had withdrawn their support for the Tritax offer.
Tritax said it was considering its options, but continued to argue its offer was ‘a more compelling proposition for Warehouse shareholders, providing them with the opportunity to participate in the future upside of both the Warehouse portfolio and the BBOX portfolio within the combined business, alongside the cash component’.
AJ Bell investment analyst Dan Coatsworth commented: ‘There is a common theme among investment trusts subject to a bidding war – boards are simply recommending the highest value deal.
‘Tritax is offering a mixture of cash and shares, meaning shareholders in the target would retain investment exposure to the underlying assets.
‘In contrast, Blackstone would simply put hard cash in the pockets of Warehouse REIT investors and nothing more. Ultimately, shareholders will decide which offer wins.’
Disclaimer: Financial services company AJ Bell referenced in the article owns Shares magazine. The author (Ian Conway) and editor (Martin Gamble) of the article own shares in AJ Bell.
