Autogrill bid for Aldeasa authorised

John Gallagher

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Spanish market regulator CNMV approves the third bid for the Spanish retailer

Spanish stock market regulator Comision Nacional del Mercado de Valores (CNMV) has authorised the €33 ($44) per share bid for Spanish travel retailer Aldeasa made by Retail Airport Finance, a subsidiary of Italian catering and retail group Autogrill formed especially to place the bid. The 34.58% stake in Aldeasa owned by Altadis has been excluded from the bid as the result of a prior agreement between Altadis and Autogrill.

Once the details of the Autogrill are officially published, Aldeasa will have one month to accept the offer. The competing bids launched by the GEA consortium (€29/$38.66 per share) and Dufry (€31/$41.33 per share) were open for acceptance until March 17, but this date is now likely to be extended. The Aldeasa board rejected both offers as not reflecting the true value of the company.

Following the official publication of the details of the Autogrill bid, the process will enter the auction phase whereby the three bidders can submit improved offers in sealed envelopes to the market regulator during a period of 5 working days.

Given the present tensions between Aldeasa and airport authority AENA, it is unclear whether the bidders are likely to submit revised offers for the consideration of the shareholders.