BCA shares up as it shuns £1.6 billion private equity bid

The City on Monday welcomed the owner of WeBuyAnyCar.com’s decision to shun a £1.6 billion sale to private equity giant Apax.

BCA, the parent company, rejected Apax’s 200p-a-share offer today, which sent the shares up almost 10% to 231.5p as investors hoped the bidder may return with a higher offer.

Apax could come back with an improved proposal as it seeks to orchestrate a comeback into the car sales sector just two years after it sold rival Auto Trader for £852.8 million. The private equity heavyweight had bought it from Guardian Media Group in 2014.

The FTSE 250 used cars website said in April that it was trading ahead of expectations “with strong profit growth and with a net debt position lower than market forecasts”. The board turned down the Apax proposal after “careful consideration” and added: “There can be no certainty that any offer will be made nor as to the terms of any offer.”

The offer price is roughly a 5% discount on BCA’s share price of 211p on Friday, valuing BCA at £1.6 billion. Apax is working with bankers at NM Rothschild. BCA is run by executive chairman Avril Palmer-Baunack, who previously worked for Stobart, which is currently in the middle of a boardroom tussle.

It floated in 2015 via a reverse takeover by Haversham Holdings at 150p a share and after aggressive expansion overseas has become one of Europe’s biggest auto resellers. Based in Farnham, Surrey, the company made pre-tax profits of £34.9 million in the six months to October on sales of £1.2 billion.

Clayton Dubilier & Rice (CDR), which was BCA’s previous owner before its listing, is said to be watching events with interest.