Mitchells & Butlers rebuffs takeover offer from shareholder Joe Lewis
Mitchells & Butlers has rebuffed a takeover offer from one of its shareholders which could value the business at £940m.
In a statement to the City this morning M&B said the offer from Piedmont Inc, owned by billionaire foreign exchange dealer Joe Lewis, who holds a 22.8% stake in the pub firm, "significantly undervalued" the company.
The offer from Lewis valued the company at 224p per share, a nil premium to the closing price of the company's shares on 26 August 2011. The shares at this date were at their lowest level since March 2009 and a 38% discount to the highest trading level of 361p on 6 January 2011, M&B said.
M&B recently saw its interim chairman Bob Ivell hold a meeting with City shareholders to address their concerns over the company's apparent struggle to fill vacancies on its board.
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By Neil Gerrard
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