The consortium led by Fortress Investment Group said it was “considering its options” over Morrisons after its takeover offer was trumped by rival private equity group Clayton, Dubilier & Rice (CD&R).
It called on Morrisons’ shareholders to “take no action” on CD&R’s £7bn agreed bid, trumping its own £6.7bn offer for the UK supermarket chain.
CD&R’s offer is worth 285p a share, well above the 272 pence a share offered by Fortress, forcing the Morrisons board to drop its recommendation of the Fortress bid.
The latest offer gives the supermarket chain an enterprise value of £9.7bn once debt is included and Morrisons’ board intends to recommend it unanimously.
