TIBBETT & Britten Group has pointed to its prospects as an independent logistics player after admitting it was the subject of a possible £300 million bid.
Although Tibbett would not reveal the identity of the likely bidder, it is understood to be Exel, a FTSE 100 constituent and the world’s biggest contract logistics company.
News of the likely bid comes as John Harvey, Tibbett’s chairman, prepares to step down from the group that he has led for 20 years. Mr Harvey has a 4.9 per cent stake in Tibbett.
Tibbett was forced yesterday to confirm market speculation over the past ten days that it was the target of a bid.
Its share price has jumped more than 30 per cent in that time as speculation focused on Exel, Germany’s Deutsche Post, UTI of the United States and Kuehne Nagel, the Swiss group.
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In a brief statement to the Stock Exchange, Tibbett said that it had received an approach that could lead to a full-blown takeover bid “at a significant premium” to its 490p Monday close. The approach is thought to have been unsolicited.
It prompted Tibbett’s shares to soar 94½p to 584½p yesterday, valuing the company at £284 million.
The stock price had hit a near five-year low earlier this year when it languished at about 370p a share.
The company would not comment further, except to point to last month’s annual meeting update, in which it said trading was ahead of last year’s levels. The company was also encouraged by the level of new business and other opportunities.
Exel, which has said that it would spend about £150 million a year on bolt-on deals under its acquisition strategy, refused to comment on the speculation. Acquiring Tibbett would amount to about two years of Exel’s acquisition budget.
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Analysts said Exel had sufficient balance sheet capacity, given its relatively low debt levels, to bid for Tibbett.