| Macquarie has staged a forced retreat from a £665 million takeover bid for European waste management group Renewi, after the target refused to play ball.
Renewi’s share price nose-dived after Macquarie’s statement, shedding more than 18 per cent. The stock closed at £5.40, having soared as high as £7.37 after Macquarie first tabled its £7.75-a-share bid on September 28.Renewi signalled a desire to remain independent and pursue its own growth path, but at least formally left the door open for an even higher bid.
Macuqarie’s initial offer represented a 50 per cent premium to the pre-bid share price, but Renewi said it had consulted shareholders before rejecting the proposal. Macquarie has spent over a decade steadily building its presence in the waste management sector, having spent more than $US5 billion in the United States, with other investments in Asian countries including China and Korea.