Jul 21 2005
Reuters are reporting that French glass and building materials maker Saint-Gobain confirmed on Thursday it might make a cash offer for plasterboard maker BPB Plc. Shares in BPB had earlier surged on speculation the company might be taken over. The stock was up 36.6 percent to 700 pence at 1345 GMT, valuing the company at around 3.5 billion pounds.
Saint-Gobain was up 1.7 percent at 48.89 euros (34 pounds).
Saint-Gobain, noting recent speculation, confirmed in a statement "that it is considering its strategic options in respect of BPB Plc which might or might not lead to a cash offer being made for the company".
Mark Hughes at Numis Securities said he expected a bid would probably have to be pitched around 650p to 700p a share to be successful.
BPB reported a 29 percent jump in underlying annual profit in May when it said it would add 20 percent to its plasterboard capacity over the next three years to cope with demand.
The news also sparked hopes of a takeover for UK building materials company Hanson Plc which saw its shares rise 3.7 percent to 553p.