Deliveroo shares were given a lift as it became the latest London-listed company to be targeted for takeover.
The food delivery group – dubbed ‘Floperoo’ after its disastrous stock market float in 2021 – rose 7 per cent in early trading amid reports it has been approached by San Francisco-based rival Doordash.
However, the discussions, which started last month, ended after a disagreement over price, according to Reuters.
Takeover target: Food delivery group Deliveroo rose 7% in early trading amid reports it has been approached by San Francisco-based rival Doordash
But analysts at Jefferies said this ‘may only be the start’ and could open the door to more takeover interest in Deliveroo, adding: ‘Such is the strength of the financial, industrial and strategic logic of a Deliveroo takeover, we would not be surprised to see similar such headlines re-emerge in the short term.
‘In our view, the key to unlocking a recommended offer from Deliveroo is understanding the sensibilities of the founder chief executive Will Shu.’
Deliveroo, which was co-founded by Shu and Greg Orlowski in 2013, floated in London to great fanfare at 390p a share in 2021, giving it a value of £7.6billion.
But the stock crashed below 80p the following year, and while it has recovered some of its losses, it is still worth just £2.1billion.
Following a sharp rise in early trading, its shares ended the day up just 1.5p, or 1.2 per cent, at 129p.
Deliveroo is just the latest London-listed company to be targeted by overseas bidders in what has been dubbed a takeover ‘feeding frenzy’.
Stock Watch – ProCook
Shares in ProCook rose after the kitchenware company returned to the black and hailed ‘a strong start to the new financial year’.
The 20-year-old retailer, with 50 stores nationwide, reported profits of £730,000 for the year to the end of March, compared with a loss of £6.5m the previous year. It said sales in the first quarter of the new financial year are up 3.5pc.
Shares rose 3p, or 17.7pc, to 19.95p, but remain well below the 2021 float price of 145p.
Others to have been targeted so far this year include Royal Mail owner International Distribution Services, mining giant Anglo American and drinks group Britvic.
The FTSE 100 was down 22.46 points, or 0.3 per cent, at 8225.33, while the FTSE 250 was down 65.33 points, or 0.3 per cent, at 20298.1.
Rising copper prices nudged miners higher, with Rio Tinto up 28p, or 0.5 per cent, at 5267p. Airline shares were under pressure, with Easyjet down 5.8p, or 1.2 per cent, at 457.8p, while British Airways owner International Consolidated Airlines fell 4.3p, or 2.6pc, to 163.8p.
Shares in magazine publisher Future – whose titles include Money Week, Country Life and Four Four Two – rose 83p, or 8.3 per cent, to 1086p, after an upgrade in the City.
Analysts at Jefferies raised their price target on Future shares to 1280p from 635p and put a ‘buy’ rating on the stock.
Aston Martin shares initially rose after it unveiled a limited-edition sportscar, Valiant, and said it would start deliveries in the fourth quarter, but they slipped later in the day, eventually losing 4.1p, or 2.6 per cent, to 150.7p.
Nat Rothschild-backed electrical components manufacturing group Volex reported a 26.3 per cent rise in revenues to £722million for the year to the end of March.
Profits rose 30.5 per cent to £61million. Shares in the company, which counts Apple and Dyson among its clients, fell 23p, or 6.5 per cent, to 331p.
Tool and equipment rental group HSS Hire said that its revenues in the first five months of 2024 were 4pc higher than the same period last year. Shares rose 0.2p, or 2.7 per cent, to 7.5p.
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