Manchester United Plc (NYSE:MANU) shares are set to make a cagey start to the new week, as interest in the football club’s takeover process appears to be flagging.
The protracted saga has effectively seen radio silence in the past weeks since the most recent reports, in early July, had suggested the Qatar-based bid from Sheikh Jassim bin Jaber Al Thani was leading the process ahead of the proposal from Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s INEOS.
Speculative media reports suggesting possible ‘decision days’ have since come and gone, meanwhile, Manchester United fans and shareholders have remained non-the-wiser.
Saturday’s pre-season friendly in New Jersey at the Metlife Stadium, some 13 miles from the New York Stock Exchange, created opportunity for a journalist from the Athletic to ‘doorstep’ co-chair and major shareholder Avram Glazer, only for the United decision maker to give scant response.
“I’m just here to enjoy the game,” was the reply, according to The Athletic's Laurie Whitwell.
Avram alongside brother Joel are, according to online rumour, the two remaining hold-outs amongst the Glazer siblings who inherited the controlling stake acquired by their father, the late Malcolm Glazer, in 2005.
It has been widely suggested, but not formally confirmed, that three of the five shareholding Glazer siblings (Kevin, Bryan and Edward) are satisfied with selling, whilst Avram and Joel, who are the only two Glazer’s with direct involvement in running the club, have yet to agree.
United’s quarterly results statement on 27 June made no mention of the sales process – which in the official club communications has retained a broader more open-ended title as a “strategic review”.
Amidst the vacuum of communications, rumour and speculation or varying credibility has flooded social media, Youtube and the Google News algorithms.
One report, this Sunday, claimed that the sale process was “quietly ticking along behind the scenes” and was now “six feet from the finish line” (whatever that means).
In the meantime, it appears that traders in the club’s New York listed shares are losing interest.
Manchester United shares are down around half a percent ahead of Monday’s open and are down some 5.2% for the past five trading days, changing hands at US$21.50 per share – to imply a market valuation of just over US$3.5 billion.