US private equity firm Clayton, Dubilier & Rice on Tuesday confirmed its increased final £2.7bn offer for Dublin-based UDG Healthcare.
CD&R, which is also seeking to take over the UK supermarket chain Morrisons, lifted its bid to £10.80 a share, UDG said in a statement to the stock market, adding that the board had agreed to its terms.
The initial offer of £10.23, made in May, was opposed by major shareholders, Allianz Global Investors and M&G who said it undervalued the company
Rory Alexander, a fund manager at M&G, last week said while the group was “pleased” that CD&R had upped its bid, “a potential offer of £10.80 would still fall short of our expectations on behalf of our customers”, the Financial Times reported last Friday.
UDG says it has received a letter of support for the improved bid from M&G and Kabouter Management, who hold 11.41% of the company between them.
