M&S: Green blasts board

DISAPPOINTMENT at Philip Green's latest offer sent Marks & Spencer shares down 6 3/4p to 356 3/4p. Marks threw out Green's new proposal at 'not less than 370p' cash per share, valuing the High Street giant at £8.4bn.

Green blasted the Marks board as 'arrogant' and vowed to appeal directly to shareholders.

But one major investor said: 'We're looking for around the £4 mark.' Another said: 'You've got to go up to 385p to 395p to start taking it seriously.'

Marks' new boss Stuart Rose is confident that he can reverse the group's poor sales and rescue it from 'retail anarchy'.

Rose is gearing up to unveil the group's new strategy on 12 July. Substantial changes in the business are already under way.

Horrified at the huge level of complexity and muddle, he axed 500 product lines in the food business last week.

His team is tackling the blunders in the clothing business, where there are too many garments of similar style and price and ridiculous trends - such as cropped tops - for older customers.

Staff contracts are to be renegotiated and more head office jobs cut as part of a spending clampdown.

With its new management, Marks claims it is worth in excess of 450p a share, much more than Green has so far indicated he is prepared to pay.

Whether he wins or loses, the Top Shop and Bhs owner has raised £11.9bn - a European first - for his tilt at Marks.

The financing package would cover Marks' equity, its £2bn debt and other costs such as staff share save schemes.

Green's banks stumped up for his higher bid proposal, including Goldman Sachs putting in an extra £450m. Green, who added £50m, taking his personal contribution to £1.1bn, is no longer the majority shareholder in the takeover consortium.

It emerged last night that Rose owns 135,000 Marks shares - worth £480,000 - bought before he was appointed.