The bidding war between Belgian equipment specialist TVH and French group Loxam over Lavendon (LVD) rumbles on. TVH has upped its offer for the equipment hire company to 261p a share, from a previous bid of 251p at the end of December, valuing the tool hire group at £444m. This represents an 88 per cent premium to Lavendon's closing share price the day before Loxam's initial approach was announced in November. TVH was forced to up the ante after an earlier increase from rival Loxam, from 250p a share to 260p.
The two companies have been locked in a bidding war for Lavendon's shares since November, and the latest bid is the fourth from TVH. Lavendon continues to support Loxam's offer and has advised shareholders to take no action regarding the competing bid. Meanwhile, Loxam said it was considering its options.
In a December letter to shareholders, Lavendon chairman John Standen said management would recommend Loxam's offer since the French company's general plant and rental activities would complement Lavendon's more specialist business. Given the fragmented nature of the UK construction equipment rental market, the combination of the two group's would also be beneficial for both, he added.
TVH also acquired a further 5.9 per cent of shares in Lavendon from Unicorn Asset Management at the time of making this latest offer. This takes the Belgian group's total stake in its takeover target to 20.4 per cent.
