Shares in supermarket chain Sainsbury slumped four per cent yesterday amid rumours that a further two companies have pulled out of a consortium which has bid to take over the retailer.
According to reports, Blackstone and Texas Pacific decided to leave the consortium after the Sainsbury family, which owns almost a fifth of the group, declined an offer of 562p per share on Friday, before a further bid was made for the grocer.
Analysts say the unconfirmed departure of the two bidders means that the latest offer put in by the consortium is also unlikely to be successful given that CVD Capital is now rumoured to be the only remaining member of the potential takeover group.
The consortium reportedly upped its offer for Sainsbury to 582p a share earlier this week following the rejection of its previous bid, which would value the supermarket chain, the UK's third-largest, at £10.1 billion.
The Sainsbury family is said to be holding out for a 600p per share bid.
Rumours that two further members of the consortium bidding for Sainsbury have departed come just days after private equity firm Kohlberg Kravis Roberts (KKR) withdrew from the group.
CVC now has until Friday to make a formal bid for Sainsbury's according to stock exchange takeover panel rules, but the prospects of a takeover are now being seen as increasingly remote.
"The market is becoming more and more sceptical about the chance of a takeover," Henk Potts, an equity strategist at Barclays Stockbrokers, said.
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