Rupert Murdoch’s REA Group Raises Offer for Rightmove to £5.9 Billion.
REA Group Offers More Money for Rightmove
Rupert Murdoch’s REA Group has increased its offer to buy Rightmove, the largest online property company in the UK, to £5.9 billion. The company had previously made a smaller offer, but Rightmove’s leaders turned it down, saying the company was worth more.
REA Group Adds £300 Million to Its Offer
REA, which Murdoch’s News Corporation partly owns, increased its offer by £300 million after Rightmove rejected the first one. The first offer valued Rightmove at 705 pence per share, but now the new offer is about 750 pence per share.
Why Rightmove Said No to the First Offer
Rightmove rejected the first offer because its profits and stock price had not yet fully recovered. Its leaders asked shareholders to stay with the company and not sell to REA.
Rightmove’s Stock Price Goes Up
Before the news of REA’s interest, Rightmove’s stock price was 555.6 pence. After the news, the price rose to 675 pence, raising the company’s value to about £5.5 billion.
What Will Happen Next?
REA has until the end of the month to decide whether to make an official offer for Rightmove or stop trying to buy the company. This decision is part of UK takeover rules called “put up or shut up” (PUSU), meaning REA must either make a formal offer or walk away.
REA’s Plans If It Buys Rightmove
If REA successfully buys Rightmove, it plans to list its shares on the London Stock Exchange. This would allow more investors to buy shares in the company.
Rightmove Seen as a Good Deal
Some experts, like analysts from Peel Hunt, say Rightmove is one of the cheapest property companies listed in Europe. The UK’s online property market has seen many deals in recent years. For example, in 2022, a US company, CoStar, bought the UK property website OnTheMarket for £100 million. In 2018, a US investment company called Silver Lake bought Zoopla, the second-largest UK property website, for £2.2 billion.
Murdoch’s Long History with REA
2001 Rupert Murdoch’s son, Lachlan, bought a large part of REA for A$2 million. By 2005, News Corporation had increased its ownership to 62%. Today, REA is worth A$26 billion. News Corporation’s property businesses, including those in the US, make up one-third of the company’s global profits.
Final Thoughts
If REA manages to buy Rightmove, it could significantly change the online property market in the UK and Europe.
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