On September 23, 2024, Rupert Murdoch looked on during a hearing on the controversial succession of Rupert Murdoch's global television and publishing empire in Reno, Nevada, the United States.
Fred Greaves | Reuters
British property portal Rightmove on Monday rejected an $8.29 billion takeover bid from Rupert Murdoch's Australian property-listed REA Group, saying the fourth bid still undervalued the company.
Rightmove said its board, after considering shareholder comments and considering representations from REA's chairman and management team, concluded that the proposals put forward on Friday remained “unattractive”.
The British company rejected the REA's request to grant due diligence authority, saying it would better safeguard shareholder interests by executing its independent strategic plan.
Murdoch's News Corp, which owns 62% of REA Group, its latest proposal includes 346p in cash, 0.0417 new REA shares and a special dividend of 6p in cash. Rightmove's implied value is 781p per share, an increase of around 3% on its previous bid.
Shares in the FTSE 100 company were down around 4% in early trading at 642p.
REA has until 1600 GMT on Monday to make a formal offer for Rightmove or walk away. It has asked the UK takeover regulator to extend the deadline.
Rightmove said that during discussions the REA had requested an extension to the deadline to allow it to consider a potential fifth proposal.
Rightmove said its chairman Andrew Fisher met with REA counterpart Hamish McLennan and that executive teams from both sides also held talks.
The REA expressed disappointment at Rightmove's repeated refusal to hold negotiations.
Rightmove, the leader in the UK house search market, has spent the past year or so dealing with concerns about increased competition from rival OnTheMarket, which was acquired by US property company CoStar in 2023.
The British company appears poised for a solid recovery from the property downturn as the prospect of further interest rate cuts boosts sentiment in the UK housing market.