Shares in Countrywide soared by more than a fifth in trading today, closing at a fresh 10-month high as rival Connells increased its bid for the company.
Connells is now offering 325p a share to buy Countrywide, valuing the company’s share capital at £112.2m and lifting its bid from 250p per share.
Countrywide, having rejected Connells’ earlier offer, is engaged in discussions over a recapitalisation with Alchemy Partners, under which shareholders would be able sell the private equity house stock at 250p per share.
Countrywide shares rose by 22% to close at 312p, their highest since early February. The company was the sharpest rising real estate or REIT stock today.
Heading in the opposite direction, several real estate companies were among the FTSE 100 index’s biggest fallers during trading. Those ranged from Berkeley Group, the day’s steepest faller, down 7.2%, to Landsec, which slipped by 2.7%.
The FTSE 100 gained 0.08% to finish at 6,555 points. The FTSE 250 was down by 1.25% at 19,929.
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