The bidding war for Darty continues as Fnac has made its third and, according to a company spokesperson, “final” bid.
The French electronics retailer Darty has been the subject of an intense bidding war between Fnac and Steinhoff, the South-African retail holding company which recently abandoned its bid for Home Retail Group. Last week saw the two rivals make five competing offers in less than 24 hours.
Fnac‘s latest offer values Darty at 170p per share. According to the company it has secured the backing of 41.05% of Darty‘s shareholders for its £913m bid.
Since the bidding began shares at Darty have continued to rise, with the company‘s market capitalisation having more than doubled since the first bid in September.
Steinhoff is reportedly considering its options. Should it be successful over Fnac it could gain “some critical mass in electronics and also good internet-based retail facility, which enhances their own online capability,” according to Avior Capital Markets Analyst Mark Hodgson.
“I think it‘s reaching a point where there‘s not much upside for either party but obviously somebody‘s got to blink first.”
