Civitas Social Housing REIT agrees to £485m take-private offer

Analysts call for counter bid

The Civitas Social Housing REIT board has agreed to a recommended all-cash offer by Wellness Unity at 80p per share, but analysts are calling for a counter bid.

The bid made by CK Asset Holdings' wholly-owned indirect subsidiary, CK Bidco, values the investment trust at approximately £485m, which represents a premium of around 44% to the closing price of 55.4p on Friday (5 May). In a statement today (9 May), chair Michael Wrobel said that although the bid undervalues the company's long-term prospects as expressed by its net asset value, the board intends to unanimously recommend that shareholders accept the "fair and reasonable" offer.  "The board recognises that Civitas, and its sector as a whole, faces a number of challenges in sentiment wh...