Prosus calls on Just Eat shareholders to accept offer
Prosus has called on Just Eat shareholders to accept its unsolicited £4.9bn takeover offer, cautioning that the offer from Dutch online food delivery firm Takeaway.com creates "signifciant risk".
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Just Eat rejected a 710p a share cash offer in October from Prosus, which was spun off from South African conglomerate Naspers, saying it "significantly" undervalued the company and reiterating its commitment to a deal with Takeaway.com.
However, Prosus insisted on Wednesday that the Takeaway.com offer underestimates the substantial investment required in Just Eat "to recapture market share and improve performance in an increasingly competitive sector undergoing global transformation".
Prosus chief executive officer Bob van Dijk said: "Our cash offer provides compelling and certain value to shareholders at a premium to the Takeaway.com offer and removes the downside risk for Just Eat’s shareholders.
"Our offer also reflects the substantial investment required in product, technology, marketing and own-delivery capabilities to make the most of Just Eat’s long-term potential."
Prosus highlighted significant risks from the Takeaway.com offer and noted that the company's stock is trading at the highest valuation multiples among its peers.
"Prosus believes that at these valuation levels there is little room for any slowdown or missteps in execution," it said.
It also said that in the absence of required investment, Just Eat’s operational underperformance is likely to continue, putting the combined valuation under pressure.
The statement from Prosus came as Takeaway.com posted an offer document to Just Eat shareholders.