william-hill-rejects-revised-offer-from-rank-and-888

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William Hill declines modified deal from Rank and 888

15 August 2016

Bookmaker William Hill has rejected a revised takeover approach from 888 and Rank, stating it still "substantially" underestimates the business.

William Hill said the brand-new proposal provided its shareholders an approximated value of 352p a share, compared with a previous offer of 339p a share.
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Rank and 888 declared their view that the bet9ja's welcome offer was "a compelling value creation chance for William Hill".

But William Hill said the revised deal was "highly opportunistic".

"The board continues to see no merit in engaging with the consortium," the company added.
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The revised takeover proposition would see William Hill get 199p in money and 0.86 of shares in BidCo - the company being formed by 888 and Rank to buy William Hill - for each share they own.

William Hill shareholders would end up with 48.8% of the combined group.

Under the previous technique, William Hill shareholders were provided 199p in cash and 0.725 BidCo shares, leaving investors with 44.6% of the combined group.
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'Substantial danger'
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"this promotion code revised proposition continues to considerably underestimate the business and the money aspect of the proposal has not altered. Therefore, the board sees no merit in engaging," said William Hill's chairman, Gareth Davis.
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"As we have said before, this promotion code is extremely opportunistic and intricate and does not improve the tactical positioning of William Hill.
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"The board continues to believe we have a strong group to provide remarkable worth to our investors and trading at the start of the 2nd half provides us renewed confidence in our stand-alone technique."
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Casino and bingo hall operator Rank and online gaming group 888 said that the proposed new mix would create the UK's biggest multi-channel gaming operator by income and profit.

They also stated it would lead to expense savings of a minimum of ₤ 100m a year, while more cost savings could possibly be discovered "through positive engagement".

However, William Hill has stated the savings will not be accomplished completely until the yohaig code end of 2020 and posture "substantial risk for William Hill shareholders".
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The primary executive of 888, Itai Frieberger, said a combined company could "lead development in the sector", while Rank president Henry Birch stated the deal made "compelling strategic sense for all 3 services".

The UK's 2nd and third-largest retail bookies, Ladbrokes and Gala Coral, are currently continuing with their ₤ 2.3 bn merger, which will see them leapfrog over William Hill to end up being the country's greatest company in the sector.

The Competition and Markets Authority has actually informed the 2 companies that they need to sell 350 to 400 stores in order for the merger to be cleared.

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