Craneware and Wood Group in eye of suitors – Daily Business

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Keith Neilson, CEO of Craneware, has an important deadline looming (pic: Terry Murden)

Two Scottish takeover targets face key deadlines this week that could change the quoted companies landscape north of the border.

Dubai-based Sidara was recently given yet another extension to its talks with Aberdeen-based Wood Group, this latest one expiring on Thursday.

Given the time being devoted to these discussions the odds must favour some sort of deal to be thrashed out sooner or later.

The following day is the deadline for Bain Capital to confirm its putative interest in Edinburgh software group Craneware, whose interests are wholly in the US healthcare market.

Bain’s statement to the market on 16 May prompted a 7.8% rise in AIM-quoted Craneware’s shares, valuing the company at about £790 million as speculation mounted of rival bids.

Tesco

Tesco has gained 40 basis points of market share over the past year which may help to explain why its shares are not too far from a 12-year high, despite fears of a supermarket price war.

Asda’s reboot under new chair Allan Leighton prompted such concerns but, for now, the competition seems relatively limited in scope, says AJ Bell.

Mr Leighton claims he can see the green shoots of recovery at Asda, but the latest Kantar Worldpanel survey of market share in the UK grocery market suggests that Tesco, Aldi and Lidl continue to have both Asda and Morrisons for breakfast.

Price war talk prompted Tesco’s chief executive Ken Murphy to give a cautious outlook for the year to February 2026, so that the company had room for manoeuvre, should it require it.

The other key feature of Thursday’s first quarter update will be whether he makes any changes to those forecasts, with which he steered analysts and shareholders to expect:

Tesco is unlikely to say anything about dividends or its capital allocation policies until the first-half results that are due in October.

Bellway

Shares in housebuilder Bellway, updating on Tuesday, are marginally higher than a year ago, but still a one-third below their pre-Covid peak as issues such as housing affordability and planning regulations linger and doubts rise again over the rate at which interest rates, and by extension mortgage rates, may fall.

Economics

There are a number of key economics statements this week, headed by the Chancellor’s Spending Review and inflation figures on Wednesday.

The latest employment and wage growth data is published on Tuesday alongside retail figures, while figures on construction are due on Thursday.

DIARY

Tuesday 10 June