As we previously reported, Sainsbury’s has Argos in its sights for acquisition. We wrote about it here.
However, Sainbury’s bid for the Home Retail Group (HRC) that owns Argos has been trumped by a counter-offer by South African retail giant Steinhoff. They already own several UK retail businesses including Bensons for Beds and Harveys as well as Conforama in France and discount chains in Africa and Australasia.
Sainsbury’s offered 167p per share for a total of £1.3bn, Steinhoff has offered 175p-per-share valuing the group at £1.42bn. Until the surprise offer came in, the deal was undergoing a due diligence process.
Sainsbury’s now has until 18th of March to revise it’s bid for HRC. It seems that analysts in the sector think it unlikely that Sainsbury’s will be able to construct a convincing package.
