Arcadia 'rejected £690m bid'

ARCADIA, the High Street retail chain, has rejected a £690m bid from BhS billionaire Philip Green and Icelandic entrepreneur Jon Johannesson, it has been reported.

According to the Sunday Telegraph, the bid was made last week by an offshore firm controlled by the Green family and unanimously rejected by Arcadia's board on Wednesday. An adviser to the retail conglomerate was reported as saying: 'The offer is too cheap. Shareholders wold not forgive us if we sold too cheaply.'

Green's offer of 365p a share is a 21% premium to the group's closing price on Friday of 300 1/2p. The Arcadia board argued that the group's shares still traded at a significant discount to the average price-earnings ratio for the retail sector of 10, even though the group is on a strong recovery path.

Analysts believe that the trading at Arcadia, which owns Top Shop and Dorothy Perkins, remains strong, the newspaper added.