Aveva shares surge as Schneider mulls takeover
Shares in British software group Aveva leapt over 30 per cent today after French industrial group Schneider said it was mulling a full buyout of the firm.
Schneider, which already owns around 60 per cent of Aveva, said it had until 21st September to decide whether to go ahead with a full takeover swoop.
“No proposal has been made to AVEVA yet and there can be no certainty that any offer will be made, nor as to the terms on which any offer will be made (should one be made),” Schneider said in a statement.
The announcement of a possible full takeover sent shares in the firm soaring today, valuing the FTSE 100 firm at almost £9bn. The spike helped the firm bounce back from a sustained slide this year in which it had shed around 47 per cent of its value before today’s rebound.
Schneider snapped up its stake in Aveva in 2017 to merge its own industrial software business with the Cambridge-based firm, which provides software tools for utilities, oil and gas producers, transportation firms.
The 2017 tie-up cost Schneider £3bn and marked its third attempt from 2015 to take control of the firm.