Canary Wharf owners reject Qatar bid The owners of Canary Wharf, Songbird Estates, have rejected a joint takeover bid from the Qatar Investment Authority (QIA) and a US investor, Brookfield Property Partners. Songbirds chairman, David Pritchard, said the offer of 295p a share significantly undervalues the firm. QIA already owns 28.6% of Songbird, while Brookfield has a 22% stake in Canary Wharf Group. Songbird shares rose to a six-year high on Thursday on news of the offer. They closed up 22% at 320p a share. The proposal significantly undervalues Songbird and does not reflect the inherent value of the business and its underlying assets, said Mr Pritchard. The group has an exceptional management team with a clear vision to deliver additional shareholder value, including from our 11-million-sq-ft development pipeline, the largest in London, he continued. James Carswell, real estate analyst at Peel Hunt, says hes not surprised that the offer was rejected. Theres a real possibility that QIA and Brookfield could come back with another offer. In our view, it needs to be in the region of 350p a share to be accepted, he said. Canary Wharf, which is 69% owned by Songbird, was established 25 years ago as the new financial district in London, and [...] newsinlondon/canary-wharf-owners-reject-qatar-bid/
Posted on: Fri, 07 Nov 2014 11:16:16 +0000
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