Logistics group Wincanton could find itself at the centre of a takeover battle as US-owned global operator GXO Logistics considers tabling a counter offer to one made last month by French-owned shipping giant CMA CGM.
GXO, which owns Clipper Logistics in the UK, surprised directors at Chippenham-headquartered yesterday by demanding access to due diligence information to enable it “to evaluate a possible offer for the company”.
Last month Wincanton’s board gave the nod to CMA’s all-cash 450p per share offer, putting a £567m value on Wincanton, which has 20,300 employees and 8,500 vehicles in more than 170 sites across the UK.
Following yesterday’s approach by GXO, CMA upped its offer to 480p a share, valuing Wincanton at £604.7m
CMA already operates in the UK under the CEVA brand, including in Filton, Bristol, where it has a major warehouse.
Clipper Logistics, which was snapped up by GXO in 2022 for £1bn, also has a base in Bristol.
Wincanton initially failed to name GXO as the rival suitor yesterday but later issued a statement to the London Stock Exchange explaining that the Connecticut-headquartered group had made an approach under the UK takeover code.
Advising shareholders to take no action at this stage, it said: “Although GXO has indicated that it is considering making a proposal for a cash offer, as of the date of this announcement, it has not provided the board of Wincanton with any formal proposal relating to a possible offer, including as to terms or price.
“If any such proposal is provided by GXO the board of Wincanton will carefully consider its terms, in conjunction with its advisers.
“There can be no certainty that an offer by GXO will be made for the company, nor as to the terms on which any offer might be made.”
The Wincanton directors said they continued to unanimously recommend CMA’s offer.
Cash-rich CMA, which is privately controlled by the Franco-Lebanese billionaire Saade family, has been on an acquisition spree in recent years, including snapping CEVA in 2019 and freight forwarder Gefco, which also has a base in Bristol, in 2022.
At the time of its initial bid it said buying Wincanton represented an attractive growth opportunity in line with CEVA's expansion strategy.
GXO recently reported full-year earnings of $741m (£585m) on revenues of $9.8bn.
The group employs around 130,000 people across its 970 locations in 27 countries. In total it operates 200m sq ft of warehouse space.
Last month Wincanton warned it was facing a “challenging trading environment” as it reported a 5% year-on-year increase in revenue. Its best-performing division continued to be eFulfilment, which has become a more important part of the business over recent years.
It increased revenue by 8.1% year-on-year, driven by the strong performance from contracts with IKEA, Wickes and The White Company.
Wincanton’s full portfolio of clients range from retailers such as New Look and Sainsbury to defence and industrial customers such as EDF and BAE System.
