Warehouse owner LondonMetric to buy Mucklow in £415m deal

The warehouse landlord LondonMetric has agreed a deal to acquire rival Mucklow for more than £400m in a deal that will create a £2.3bn rival to Segro, the sector’s largest listed player. 

FTSE 250-listed LondonMetric on Thursday announced a £415m cash-and-share offer for the Midlands-based A&J Mucklow Group at 655p a share, a premium of almost 20 per cent to the group’s last closing price.  

Mucklow shareholders will receive 2.19 newly issued LondonMetric shares and 204.5p in cash for each share they hold, amounting to a 19.7 per cent premium to the group’s last closing price and an 11.4 per cent premium to net asset value. The combined group will hold property assets worth £2.3bn.

LondonMetric, formerly known as London & Stamford Property, said the offer had been accepted by Mucklow’s directors and would “create one of the UK’s leading listed logistics and distribution platforms”. Both companies have recommended their shareholders vote in favour of the deal. 

Warehouse landlords have been boosted by the transition to digital retailing, in which demand has increased for “last mile” distribution sites catering for e-commerce and food delivery, along with out-of-town “big box” sites.