£2.9 billion recommended offer Wm Morrison Supermarkets plc, Safeway plc, ABN Amro Corporate Finance Ltd, HSBC Bank plc, Schroder Salomon Smith Barney
Wm Morrison Supermarkets plc has made a friendly offer to acquire Safeway plc. Under the terms of the offer, Safeway shareholders will receive 1.32 new Morrisons stock for each share held, valuing each share at 277.5 pence and representing a premium of 30.3% on their closing price. Morrisons will own 53% of the enlarged group with Safeway shareholders owning the remaining 47%. The deal will be effected by means of an offer, made on behalf of Morrisons, by ABN Amro for the entire share capital of Safeway. Rival retailers, Wal-Mart Stores Inc and J Sainsbury plc are currently considering making their own offers for Safeway.
Value: £2.9 billion
Announced: January 09 2003
Parties involved |
Legal advisers |
|
Wm Morrison Supermarkets plc (Food & Drug Retailers) Bidder |
Ashurst LLP
- London
Adrian Clark Paul Gadd Nigel Parr Mathew Hughes Barbara Allen Stephen Short Kate Lamburn Gordons LLP - Leeds John Holden |
|
Safeway plc (General Retailers) Target |
Clifford Chance LLP
- London
Neil Harvey Kathy Honeywood Bruce Hedley Imogen Clark Robin Tremaine Richard Sharples John L Osborne |
|
ABN Amro Corporate Finance Ltd (Speciality & Other Finance) Financial adviser to bidder |
|
|
HSBC Bank plc (Banks) Financial adviser to target |
|
|
Schroder Salomon Smith Barney (Speciality & Other Finance) Financial adviser to target |
