Tate & Lyle shares soar on report Advent prepping takeover

Shares in food ingredients group Tate & Lyle surged by more than 10% on Wednesday on a report that US private equity group Advent was preparing a bid for the company.

The US-based buyout firm is reportedly in the early stages of bid preparations, the Financial Times reported, citing two people with direct knowledge of the matter, who also cautioned there was no certainty that a firm offer would be made.

Advent has yet to propose an offer, the people added, but if it were made it would exceed Tate & Lyle’s £2.8bn market value, the report stated.

Tate & Lyle shares were up 12.6% at one point to 839p, increasing its market value to £3.2bn. The company is in the process of a takeover of its own, having agreed to buy pectin and speciality gums provider CP Kelco for $1.8bn.

Reporting by Frank Prenesti for Sharecast.com

The FTSE 250 food and beverage company is being targeted by US-based Advent International, according to the Financial Times.

While Advent, which is the eighth largest private equity firm in the world, is in the early stages of preparing a bid, a firm offer is not yet certain.

Though the size of Advent’s offer is not yet known, it would exceed Tate & Lyle’s market value of £2.8bn, sources told the FT.