Rupert Murdoch's REA Group ends pursuit of Rightmove
Rightmove dropped 8% on Monday after Rupert Murdoch's REA Group dropped its pursuit of the UK property website. File picture: PA
Shares in UK real estate website Rightmove dropped 8% on Monday after Rupert Murdoch’s REA Group ended its .29bn (€7.4bn) takeover pursuit following the rejection of a fourth bid.
Australian property listing firm REA’s decision to walk away from making a formal offer for Rightmove capped a month-long saga that saw the London-listed firm rebuff four proposals on valuation concerns.
Rightmove’s shares, which had rallied 20% since the first bid was made public on September 2, fell more than 8%. REA said in a statement:
Earlier on Monday, Rightmove said it had declined a request from REA to grant due diligence access — which would allow REA to assess any potential issues or challenges it might need to address after the takeover is agreed — adding that shareholder interests would be better served through the execution of its standalone strategic plan.
REA, which had requested an extension of the deadline to make a formal offer, said it was disappointed that Rightmove was “unwilling to do so”.
“But REA is excited to pursue its many other avenues for growth,” it said.
REA has already expanded into other regions including India and reiterated that it would look to apply for a secondary listing in London to give it access to a wider pool of investors.
Analysts at JP Morgan had said that its conversations with investors had suggested an offer price of at least about 800 pence to 850 pence per share would have been needed to see the deal through.
The latest proposal by REA Group, which is 62% owned by Murdoch’s News Corp, consisted of 346 pence in cash, 0.0417 new REA shares and a special dividend of 6 pence in cash.
That gave Rightmove an implied value of 781 pence per share, about a 3% increase over the previous bid.
Rightmove, the runaway house search market leader in the UK, has been facing increased competition over the past year or so from rival website OnTheMarket, which was bought by American property firm CoStar in 2023.
The UK company looks primed for a steady recovery from a property market downturn as the potential for more rate cuts boosts sentiment in the UK housing sector.
