REGISTER: Hear how PetroTal (PTAL) is increasing oil & gas production in Peru. Find out more at the focusIR Feb Investor Webinar. Sign up here.

Less Ads, More Data, More Tools Register for FREE
Sponsored Content
Don't want ads? Click here
Sponsored Content
Don't want ads? Click here

Pin to quick picksNEX.L Share News (NEX)

  • There is currently no data for NEX

Watchlists are a member only feature

Login to your account

Timelines are a member only feature

Login to your account

Alerts are a premium feature

Login to your account

UPDATE 2-National Express in talks for all-share takeover of Stagecoach

Tue, 21st Sep 2021 07:33

* Stagecoach shareholders would own 25% in merged group

* Potential deal would value Stagecoach at 445 mln stg

* Stagecoach shares jump 20%, National Express up 7%

* Companies say no certainty a formal offer will be made
(Adds background, analyst comment, share price)

By Sarah Young

LONDON, Sept 21 (Reuters) - British transport company
National Express is in talks to acquire rival operator
Stagecoach Group in an all-share deal, offering scope
for cost savings and underpinning their recovery from COVID-19.

The tie-up, which would value Stagecoach at about 445
million pounds ($609 million), comes as government support to
help the companies get through the pandemic is due to expire.

National Express has bus and coach operations in Spain and
Britain, runs school buses in the United States, and has a
German rail contract.

Stagecoach, solely focused on Britain, is the country's
biggest bus and coach operator. The company was founded by Brian
Souter and his sister Ann Gloag in Perth in 1980, starting out
with just two buses bought with their father’s redundancy money.

They still own stakes in the company - Souter has about
14.55% and Gloag around 10.47%, based on Refinitiv data.

Under the terms of the potential takeover, Stagecoach
shareholders would receive 0.36 new National Express shares for
each Stagecoach share, giving them a 25% stake in the merged
group.

That represents an 18% premium on the closing price of
Stagecoach's shares on Monday.

Stagecoach's stock jumped 20% to 81 pence in early trading
on Tuesday. National Express rose 7% to 239 pence per share,
giving it a market value of 1.48 billion pounds.

During the pandemic, both Stagecoach and National Express
received government support to keep services running when
passenger numbers were down, but that funding will end in the
coming months.

Transport usage is starting to recover as workers return to
offices, but is still not near its pre-pandemic levels.

The companies said the tie-up would make pre-tax cost
savings of 35 million pounds per year through efficiencies such
as National Express utilising Stagecoach's depots for its coach
operations.

Stagecoach runs the megabus service, which like National
Express, operates coach services between British cities.

Citi analysts said the deal would be positive for the
transport sector. Rival UK operators FirstGroup and
Go-Ahead also rose around 3% on news of the potential
deal.

"We have argued for consolidation in the UK Public Transport
given the structural challenges facing the industry, i.e. the
pandemic impact on passenger volume and capex headwinds related
to the adoption of environmentally-friendly vehicles," Citi said
in a note.

The companies said that discussions and due diligence
remained ongoing and there could be no certainty of a formal
offer.

Should a deal go ahead, Stagecoach's chairman Ray O'Toole, a
former chief operating officer at National Express, would become
chair of the combined group, while National Express chief
executive Ignacio Garat would continue as CEO of the merged
entity.
($1 = 0.7310 pounds)
(Reporting by Sarah Young; Editing by Kate Holton, Michael
Holden and Jane Merriman)

More News
26 Apr 2022 07:20

National Express Q1 revenues back at 2019 levels

(Sharecast News) - Coach operator National Express said on Tuesday that first-quarter group revenues were back to 2019 levels, with the group actually trading ahead of the same time two years earlier during March.

Read more
25 Apr 2022 10:49

Berenberg lowers target price on National Express

(Sharecast News) - Analysts at Berenberg lowered their target price on coach operator National Express from 340.0p to 300.0p on Monday after adjusting numbers on the stock now that the dust has settled on the potential acquisition of Stagecoach and the subsequent counterbid from DWS.

Read more
22 Apr 2022 16:03

UK earnings, trading statements calendar - next 7 days

Read more
20 Apr 2022 11:52

IN BRIEF: DWS fund has 28% acceptances for Stagecoach takeover offer

Stagecoach Group PLC - Perth, Scotland-based transport provider - Pan-European Infrastructure III SCSp, an infrastructure fund managed by DWS Infrastructure, says it has acceptances for its takeover offer representing 27.5% of Stagecoach shares. Of these, shares it has purchased represent a 17% stake, while offer acceptances from other shareholders represent a 10.5% stake. Last month, the Stagecoach board accepted DWS's GBP594.9 million cash offer, switching its support from an all-share merger with UK peer National Express Group PLC. The DWS offer of 105 pence per Stagecoach share remains open until May 21. It has a 75% acceptance condition, though this could be lowered.

Read more
19 Apr 2022 16:02

UK earnings, trading statements calendar - next 7 days

Read more
22 Mar 2022 09:45

LONDON BROKER RATINGS: Bank of America says buy Experian and Intertek

(Alliance News) - The following London-listed shares received analyst recommendations Tuesday morning:

Read more
17 Mar 2022 10:59

SMALL-CAP WINNERS & LOSERS: Go-Ahead up as fine less harsh than feared

(Alliance News) - The following stocks are the leading risers and fallers among London Main Market small-caps on Thursday.

Read more
17 Mar 2022 10:19

National Express believes Stagecoach merger superior to DWS cash offer

(Alliance News) - National Express Group PLC on Thursday said it believes its all-share combination with Stagecoach Group PLC remains the better choice after being spurned for a cash offer from DWS Infrastructure.

Read more
17 Mar 2022 09:12

LONDON MARKET OPEN: Stocks rise after Fed rate hike; Ocado, M&S drop

(Alliance News) - Stock prices in London opened higher on Thursday after the US Federal Reserve raised interest rates for the first time since 2018, while Ocado sank after its online grocery joint venture with Marks & Spencer warned on inflationary pressures.

Read more
17 Mar 2022 07:52

LONDON MARKET PRE-OPEN: Cineworld loss narrows as audiences return

(Alliance News) - Stock prices in London are seen opening higher on Thursday, tracking a rally in US and Asian equity markets, after the Federal Reserve, as expected, raised interest rates from historic lows.

Read more
17 Mar 2022 07:51

National Express says Stagecoach offer creates 'superior value creation opportunity'

(Sharecast News) - Coach operator National Express said on Thursday that its proposed £1.9bn all-share combination with Stagecoach represented "a superior value creation opportunity" when compared to an offer from German infrastructure fund DWS.

Read more
14 Mar 2022 09:49

LONDON BROKER RATINGS: Bernstein raises Unilever and cuts Reckitt

(Alliance News) - The following London-listed shares received analyst recommendations Monday morning:

Read more
14 Mar 2022 08:39

Liberum slashes National Express price target

(Sharecast News) - Liberum slashed its price target on National Express on Monday to remove upside from the Stagecoach deal, which has fallen through.

Read more
10 Mar 2022 18:00

FTSE 100 weighed down by banks and oil firms; Rio Tinto slumps

March 10 (Reuters) - London's FTSE 100 fell on Thursday with heavyweight financial and oil shares leading declines, along with miner Rio Tinto after it severed all ties with Russian businesses and also traded ex-dividend.

Read more
10 Mar 2022 11:01

National Express happy to ride solo but Stagecoach remains on radar

March 10 (Reuters) - National Express does not necessarily need to buy rival Stagecoach to boost revenue and profit, although it is still considering its options after it was outbid by a new suitor this week, the transport company said on Thursday.

Read more

Free Investment Tools

Register for FREE

Login to your account

Don't have an account? Click here to register.

Quickpicks are a member only feature

Login to your account

Don't have an account? Click here to register.