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Gist to be sold off in BOC takeover deal?
Page 16
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LOGISTICS GROUP Gist may be sold off if parent group BOC is taken over by rival industrial gas giant Linde of Germany.
Analysts believe that Gist, which employs 5,500 people and operates more than 1,000 vehicles, would be sold because it is a noncore business for both groups.
An initial 0.6bn takeover bid by Linde has been rejected by BOC on the grounds that it is too low, but a higher offer may follow.
Paul Satchell. analyst with ING Financial Markets, explains: "An enlarged group would be very inclined to dispose of non-core assets to reduce the debt incurred by the takeover of the group."
Harald Gruber. analyst with German bank West LB, estimates that Gist would he worth more than 000m, based on last year's profit of £24.5m on turnover of f...316m.
"If we talk about assets like Gist, there's every reason to consider an eventual sale to keep the financial strain (of the takeover) as low as possible," he adds.
Gist, which operates in the Netherlands, Czech Republic and Australia as well as the UK. declines to comment.