Another Takeover Approach In The Property Market
Hot on the heels of the conditional takeover of Minerva it has been announced that buy-to-let specialist Paragon is in talks with a number of suitors which may or may not lead to a takeover bid for the company. After the Minerva announcement this week, the fact that more interest is being shown in the sector is very encouraging, but will it last?
When you consider that Paragon shares have collapsed by some 93% of late due to the fact that they were unable to finance buy-to-let agreements and the market turned south, you might assume there is some value as and when the market picks up. The group of bidders are rumoured to include private equity outfit Blackstone which has a very impressive track record with turnaround companies. However, it will be interesting to see if there are any potential bidders from the property sector itself and what they have to offer.
The shares rose over 25% on the back of the announcement and while valued in the region of £300 million this is nothing compared to their size at the height of the market. Whether they will reach those highs again in private or public hands very much remains to be seen.
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