The European company bidding to buy the group behind the Evans Halshaw and Stratsone car dealerships said it could now be tempted to change course and sell its existing stake in the business – if the right offer came along.
Earlier this week it was revealed that Swedish car sales giant Hedin Mobility Group AB had made a £400 million bid for Nottingham-headquartered Pendragon Plc.
Hedin, which is a shareholder in Pendragon, said it was prepared to pay 29p a share for the £3.4 billion turnover British group.
A day after revealing the bid, Pendragon said it was conducting a comprehensive review of its options – including a potential sale of its dealer management software company Pinewood Technologies.
Pendragon's brands include Evans Halshaw (which has 100 sites); premium dealer Stratstone; fleet and contract hire business Pendragon Vehicle Management; car parts distributor Quickco and Pinewood. Its online CarStore.com brand underwent a relaunch in May and lists around 10,000 cars across the various group brands.
In a new statement Hedin said it was “surprised” by the “radical” change in direction from Pendragon and the announcement of the review.
It said the review “seems to contradict the long-term view of the Pendragon Board that Pinewood continues to be a fundamental aspect of Pendragon's strategy, which was reiterated to Hedin Mobility by Pendragon as recently as 25 September 2022”.
Hedin said that despite earlier saying it would not consider selling its shareholding in Pendragon, it might now be tempted to offload its stake.
It said: “Hedin Mobility reserves the right to set this sentence aside in the event that a third party announces a firm offer for Pendragon at a price not less than 35 pence per Pendragon share.”
Shares in Pendragon closed at 27p on Wednesday.
Total Pendragon group sales for the first six months of 2022 were £1.8 billion, 1.6 per cent up on a year earlier. Underlying pre-tax profit was £33.5 million, down 4.6 per cent.
