£405m takeover deal at car retail giant stalls

Nottingham car retail giant Pendragon has turned down a £405m takeover offer from an unnamed large international corporate.

The deal collapsed after four of Pendragon’s five major shareholders agreed to the deal – but were “unable to engage” with the fifth and the bidder withdrew its offer and terminated discussions.

On July 2022, Pendragon published a post-close trading update for the six months to 30 June 2022 where it forecast underlying profit before tax of around £33m in first half of 2022 against £35m last year.

A statement from Pendragon this morning (August 5) said: “The company continues to expect to deliver group underlying profit before tax in line with board expectations. The board has full confidence in the company’s strategy and in management to continue to deliver significant value for all stakeholders.”

Pandragon owns the Evans Halshaw, Stratstone, CarStore and Pinewood brands.