Ranks not looking to retaliate

Press, 1 June 1989, Page 47

Ranks not looking to retaliate

Ranks Hovis McDougall Pic (RHM) has denied it is looking for a predator to buy its 14.9 per cent stake in Goodman Fielder Wattie (GFW) in retaliation for Goodman selling its Ranks shares to the Sunningdale consortium.

When Goodman sold its Ranks’ holding the Ranks’ share price jumped on market expectations that Sunningdale, which includes the entrepreneur, Sir James Goldsmith, would bid for Ranks. Ranks’ finance director, Mr Bob Rogerson, denied that Ranks was now looking for a predatory buyer for its Goodman stake as a reprisal. "We are testing the market,” he said. “It doesn’t really matter whether it (the sale) is to a predator.” Mr Rogerson said Ranks would not sell the stake to raise money to defend itself against a possible take-over bid by Sunningdale. “It wouldn’t be for defence, but just to raise cash ... defence doesn’t come into

it,” he said. He said Ranks had not been informed of Sunningdale’s plans, but that Sir James would meet Ranks’ executives in a few weeks.

Analysts said Ranks was likely to be aiming for a quick sale of the Goodman stake and would probably be happy with anything above a break-even sale price. Ranks said it had had inquiries from four or five potential buyers for its Goodman stake.

“If we got the right bid we would sell, at the right price,” Mr Rogerson said.

Ranks built its Goodman stake after it announced a bid for Goodman on April 24. Ranks abandoned the bid on May 22 after news on May 18 that Goodman had sold its own 29.9 per cent stake in Ranks to Sunningdale. Goodman last year bid for RHM at 465 p a share. The bid lapsed on subsequent referral to Britain’s Monopolies Commission and in September Goodman said it wanted to sell the stake.