Interesting corporate manoeuvres1 May 2025 15:59
Science Group's corporate activity in relation to Ricardo plc is a rare, intriguing and quite transparent window into the boardrooms of both companies. Science Group has actively engaged with TP Group plc in the past, resulting in a takeover and the way the acquisition played out in the early stages had similarities with Science Group's current engagement (gradual purchase of 20% approx) and public admonishment (by SG) of the destruction of shareholder value by the Ricardo board.
Science Group has sought to requisition a general meeting and has clearly had some engagement with Ricardo's largest shareholders (so few that it would be relatively easy to be in contact with those holding considerably more than a further 50% of the shares not already owned).
Interestingly whilst Science Group is today capitalised at circa £200M, Ricardo is trading at a 15 year low and capitalised circa £168M.
So this engagement is between two companies of an approximately similar size and is not a David & Goliath interaction between one obviously larger and one obviously smaller player.
My sense so far of how the two boards have responded publicly is that Ricardo are a long way behind the curve, poorly led and very likely to have to accept board changes at the least, positively much more engagement than that.