7:32 am, September 29, 2022
Hedin Group has performed a U-turn and now won’t block any rival bids for Pendragon.
A statement issued to the London Stock Exchange at the close of trading yesterday (Sept 28) by the Swedish investor said he reserved the right to withdraw his pledge to block any other buy-out approach ‘in the event that a third party announces a firm offer for Pendragon at a price not less than 35p per Pendragon share’.
It marks an about turn by Anders Hedin, 55, who earlier this week declared he would block any rival bid for the UK listed car dealer group.
Hedin holds a 27.5 per cent stake in Pendragon and last week launched a takeover bid at 29p per share, valuing Pendragon at £405m.
The latest statement by Hedin primarily focused on its ‘surprise’ that Pendragon revealed on Sept 27 it was conducting a review of its operations in light of Hedin’s buy-out approach.
In that announcement by Pendragon, it said it noted Hedin’s intention not to keep its Pinewood dealer management system within its portfolio of brands and would seek to sell it off.
However, in yesterday’s statement by Hedin, it said: ‘Hedin Mobility Group AB notes the announcement by the board of Pendragon on September 27, 2022 that it is conducting a review of potential strategic options for Pendragon.
‘Hedin Mobility was surprised by the announcement which seems to contradict the long-term view of the Pendragon board that Pinewood continues to be a fundamental aspect of Pendragon’s strategy, which was reiterated to Hedin Mobility by Pendragon as recently as September 25, 2022.
‘In light of this radical change of direction from the Pendragon Board, Hedin Mobility is considering its position in relation to its current shareholding’
The statement went on to include Hedin’s U-turn on blocking any rival approaches for Pendragon.
Hedin operates 200 dealerships in Belgium, Norway, Sweden and Switzerland via its Hedin Bil subsidiary.
Pendragon includes the Evans Halshaw and Stratstone names and runs around 160 showrooms in the UK.
Last week, Pendragon revealed its underlying pre-tax profit fell slightly to £33.5m in the first half of 2022.
