Top 20 shareholders line up to oppose takeover of London-listed events organizer Hyve Group by US private equity predators
Top 20 shareholders are lining up to oppose the takeover of London-listed events organizer Hyve Group by US private equity predators.
Investors M&G, Redwheel and Blackmoor Investment Partners have spoken out against the £481 million deal that would see yet another company disappear from the London stock market.
Together they have about 17 percent of the vote, which calls into question the takeover.
US-based Providence Equity Partners last month agreed to pay 108 pence per share for Hyve, valuing the company behind exchanges such as Pure London at £481 million.
The dissenting investors pose a legitimate threat to Providence’s bid, which requires 75 percent of the vote.
Opposition: US-based Providence Equity Partners agreed last month to pay 108 pence per share for Hyve
While the board said “the offer represents shareholder value,” a Blackmoor spokesman said the deal seriously undervalues Hyve.
“At the moment, UK pensioners and shareholders risk being shortchanged if we allow bidders to buy companies at the current UK discount level compared to European, US and other global peers,” they told the Mail.
“Companies are being sold to new owners, but it’s the shareholder’s responsibility to draw a line for value.”
Rupert Krefting, head of corporate finance and stewardship at M&G Investments, echoed this point, saying: “The latest bid for Hyve significantly undervalues the company and we intend to vote against the acquisition.”
He believes there is still potential in the Hyve share price, whose post-pandemic comeback has not yet fully materialized.
While Hyve’s shares haven’t fully recovered since the £900bn events industry came to a halt at the start of the pandemic, they’re up 114 per cent over the past six months.
Krefting also pointed to the long-term benefits of withdrawing from markets such as Russia after the invasion of Ukraine, which he said will improve the “quality of the portfolio” over time. Hyve’s largest shareholder, Strategic Value Partners, with a 17 percent stake, said it would support the acquisition when it was first announced.
But it declined to comment on whether this position had changed after yesterday.
Interest in takeovers in UK companies increased during Covid as bidders sought to take advantage of low price tags in a wave of ‘pandemic looting’. G4S, the AA, Morrisons and Ultra Electronics are among the companies that have been sold in recent years.
Hyve, formerly International Trade Exhibitions, was founded in 1991 by the Shashoua family, who wanted to benefit from the transition of the former Soviet Union to a market economy.
Nearly all of its exhibitions now take place in advanced economies, having sold some global operations in the past year.