Private equity firm Sycamore weighs bid for fashion chain Ted Baker

U.S. private equity firm Sycamore Partners is weighing a takeover bid for the British fashion retailer Ted Baker.

Sycamore was considering making a formal approach, the report said, adding that the equity firm has hired investment bank Numis to advise on the potential offer.

This comes after a Wall Street Journal report earlier this week said that Sycamore and Canada’s Hudson’s Bay plan to bid in high $60s a share for Kohl’s Corp (KSS.N). Kohl’s had previously rejected buyout offers in February.

Get the week’s top news delivered directly to your inbox – Sign up for our newsletter

Ted Baker and Sycamore declined Reuters requests for a comment.

Ted Baker’s shares closed up 8.88% on Thursday at 98.75 pence, giving the company a total valuation of 182.3 million pounds ($239.65 million), Reuters calculations based on Refinitiv Eikon data showed.

In February, Ted Baker said it is “cautiously optimistic” about the outlook for the current year after a 35% year-on-year jump in sales in the fourth quarter, a period when pandemic-related restrictions were still in place.

Source: Reuters

Can’t stop reading? Read more