Marks and Spencer has seen its share price shoot up this morning (18 March) following rumours that the Qatar Investment Authority (QIA) is planning an GBP8bn (US$12.1bn) bid for the UK retailer.
The retailer’s share price was up 8.62% this morning to 404.60 pence per share following a report in the Sunday Times that the QIA has approached banks and private equity houses, including CVC Capital Partners, to assemble a group to make a bid for the retailer.
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The QIA owns a 26% stake in supermarket retailer Sainsbury’s, which Bank of America Merrill Lynch analyst Richard Wallis said may reignite 2007 speculation about a merger between the two.
“Bid speculation regarding M&S comes and goes and this is not the first time that a sovereign wealth fund has been reported to be looking at it. A potential exit route along with financing are likely to be the biggest obstacles to a bid. However even so we think M&S bid speculation can’t be dismissed out of hand,” he said.
M&S declined to comment and Qatar did not return a request for comment at the time of going to press.
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