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LONDON, Sept 29 (Reuters) - A $9.5-billion fight for British
supermarket Morrisons will be decided at an auction on
Saturday, when two U.S. private equity groups will go
head-to-head in up to five rounds of bids.
Britain's Takeover Panel said on Wednesday that Clayton,
Dubilier & Rice (CD&R) and Fortress Investment Group had agreed
to settle the matter in a one-day auction.
CD&R, a U.S. private equity firm, started its pursuit of
Britain's fourth-largest grocer in June.
Softbank-backed Fortress entered the fray in July, winning
the backing of the board of Morrisons for bids at 252 pence and
then 270 pence a share.
CD&R returned to trump Fortress with a 285-pence offer,
valuing the supermarket at 7 billion pounds ($9.5 billion).
Given that neither bidder had declared its offer final, the
Takeover Panel said all of the parties had agreed to an auction
process to decide the outcome.
Morrisons shares were trading up 1.3% at 296 pence in early
trading on Wednesday.
The battle for Morrisons is the most high-profile amid a
raft of bids for British companies this year, reflecting private
equity's appetite for cash-generating UK assets.
With more than one bidder increasingly targeting one
company, previously rare auctions have become more frequent.
The most recent on Sept. 22 resulted in a consortium of
funds managed by Ancala Partners and Fiera Infrastructure paying
372 pence a share to buy waste management company Augean, a near
10% rise on the highest offer before the auction.
Other auctions set up this year to decide the fate of
security firm G4S and pharmaceutical company Vectura were
scrapped when one of the parties declared their bid final, a
development that could still scupper the Morrisons tussle.
($1 = 0.7311 pounds)
(Reporting by Paul Sandle; Editing by Kate Holton and
Bernadette Baum)
