Windward shares soar on £216m takeover offer

Israeli maritime tech group Windward has received a £216m takeover offer from a US private equity firm that has been unanimously recommended by its directors, causing shares to soar early on Tuesday.

FTV VIII, a fund managed by FTV Capital, has offered 215p per share for Windward, a 47% premium to Monday's closing price of 146p and a 92% premium to the six-month average.

The offer price is also 39% higher than the IPO placing price of 155p pence during its stock market debut in December 2021.

The stock was up 43% at 208.60p in early deals on Tuesday.

In a statement, Windward said that FTV had been assessing the business over recent months and believes private ownership is more beneficial for its future prospects and for its shareholders.

"This marks an exciting next step in the evolution of Windward, providing the opportunity to build upon our first mover advantage in maritime generative AI through accelerated innovation and greater market reach," said chief executive Ami Daniel.

"The Fund team have an outstanding track record in supporting the scaling of founder-led software businesses globally and we believe that together we will be a significantly stronger organisation."

The acquisition remains subject to shareholder approvals at a meeting on 10 January.