Intu Properties PLC (LON:INTU) has pushed back the deadline for a consortium led by its deputy chairman John Whittaker to firm up its takeover offer for the shopping centre owner.
Last month, billionaire Whittaker and his Canadian and Saudi Arabian backers put forward a preliminary offer of 215p for each Intu share, valuing the FTSE 250 firm at just shy of £3bn.
READ: Intu considering takeover proposal from deputy chairman
They were due to either confirm their intention to make a firm offer or walk away from the bid by tomorrow (November 15), but the deadline has now been extended until next Thursday (November 22).
Intu said the two parties had made “good progress” over the past month.
The offer comes in the wake of Intu’s CEO stepping down in July as it swung to a loss and warned of lower growth in rental income.
It also follows an aborted £3.5bn takeover bid from UK peer Hammerson PLC (LON:HMSO) which was pulled back in April with the predator blaming pressure from shareholders and a tough UK retail market.
Hammerson's recommended all share offer had valued Intu shares at 253.9p each.
In early morning trading on Wednesday, shares were broadly flat at 194.2p, suggesting investors remain unconvinced that a deal will go ahead.