Talktalk Telecom Group PLC (LON:TALK) rejected a takeover bid last year from its second-biggest investor that would have seen it valued at around £1.5bn, almost double its current market cap.
According to Sky News, the FTSE 250 firm turned down the 135p per share offer from asset manager Toscafund, which at the time is understood to have owned 19% of the group, on the basis that it did not provide sufficient value for investors.
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Toscafund’s stake since then has risen to 29%, equal to the holding of TalkTalk’s founder and executive chairman Charles Dunstone , who also co-founded retailer Carphone Warehouse.
News of last year’s bid may spark renewed interest in TalkTalk as a potential takeover target in the consolidating telecoms sector, particularly with the company’s share price having fallen by over a third since the start of 2020.
In June, the company forecast that it will suffer a £15mln hit from the coronavirus in its current financial year alongside “stable” headline earnings, although the user base for its fibre broadband increased by 34% in the year to March 31.
A merger between TalkTalk and another market player would follow a trend of other large deals recently, particularly the £31bn combination between Virgin Media and O2, owned by Liberty Global and Spanish firm Telefonica respectively.
Shares in TalkTalk were up 0.7% at 75.4p in mid-afternoon trading on Tuesday.