Empiric Student Property has retracted statements its top team made to an investment analyst about a potential £719m takeover by Unite Group just minutes after their talks were confirmed.
The company announced via the London Stock Exchange at 11.15am on 5 June that it had entered a period of due diligence after receiving a takeover proposal from Unite.
In a statement today, Unite said that just 15 minutes later, senior representatives of the company attended a scheduled meeting with investors and an investment analyst. That meeting was not attended by an appropriate financial adviser or corporate broker to the company in accordance with the UK’s Takeover Code.
The unnamed investment analyst then published a report containing two statements attributed to Empiric from the meeting. First, that half or two-thirds of Empiric’s £15m of overheads could be “easily cut”, second that the Competition and Markets Authority would “probably” look at six of the 23 cities in which Empiric is present “and eventually some asset disposals might be required”.
Empiric now says the statements should not have been made and has retracted both.
“In respect of the synergies statement, the company acknowledges that it was neither properly compiled nor prepared with due care and consideration, such that the synergies statement is not capable of being supported by reports from its reporting accounts or financial advisers in accordance with the requirements of Rule 28.1(a) of the Takeover Code,” it said.
It added: “In respect of the CMA statement, the company clarifies that, at this stage, there has been no engagement with the CMA by Empiric and no substantive competition analysis undertaken by its advisers.”
Unite has until 3 July to confirm a firm bid.
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