1:36 pm, April 28, 2011
CAR dealer group Lookers has rejected a speculative offer for the company today which saw its share price rocket.
Shares in the company leapt 6p to 61.25p – adding more than £23m to its market value of £210.2m – as talk of the approach reached investors.
The London Evening Standard reported that there were two private-equity firms interested, one of which was rumoured to be Apax, as well as rival dealer Inchcape.
Interest has been spiked as many think the car industry is on its way to recovery with next year earmarked as a good one for the trade.
In a statement Lookers said it had rejected the offer, but despite this said the proposal constituted an approach for the purposes of the takeover code and therefore placed the company in an ‘offer period’. The firm added a further statement would be made when it was necessary.
Lookers operates 124 dealerships and represents 33 brands including Ford, Vauxhall, Nissan and Toyota. It reported in March that profits had tripled to £31m, with revenue increasing by 7.7 per cent to £1.9bn.
