Online gaming group 888 has jumped by nearly a quarter following reports of a possible £750m bid from William Hill.
The company’s shares are up 35p to 180p after the Times said it had held talks with William Hill about a 210p a share offer. William Hill is currently down 4.7p at 384.9p.
888 issued a trading update just before Christmas, saying it was confident of meeting full year expectations.
So far no official statement on the bid speculation has been made, but it surely can’t be long until a response comes, otherwise the Takeover Panel is likely to be on the case.
Update (14.46):
888 has confirmed it has received an approach from William Hill regarding a possible offer. But as is the way of these things it added there was “no certainty.. that any firm offer will be made nor as to the terms.”
Another announcement will be made within 28 days.
Meanwhile the news has sent rival online group Bwin 4.85p higher to 103.2p.
If William Hill is prepared to pay 210p/share for 888 - that implies 15x EBITDA. That multiple on BWIN implies north of 150p.
— Angry Arb (@AngryArb) February 10, 2015
