Bidder's droop

28 March 2008 By John Foley Follow @johnsfoley

The only trade buyer for the pubs group has walked away. But M&B s shareholders needn t mourn too much. The company continues to generate cash and despite its recent woes and a discredited management, M&B still has options without an obvious bidder.

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Punch Taverns said it had decided not to proceed with an offer for Mitchells & Butlers, a rival UK pubs group. It said that preliminary due diligence suggested an offer would not be in the best interests of its shareholders.

M&B had set a deadline of March 28 for offers and proposals, according to people familiar with the situation. Among those to meet with management were Punch and private equity groups Permira, CVC and Blackstone.

In January, M&B said it had realised a £391m pretax loss on some hedging contracts it had taken out ahead of forming a propertyrelated joint venture. Its chairman and finance director both subsequently resigned.

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