Wood Group Rejects £1.4 Billion Takeover Proposal From Sidara

John Wood Group Plc said it rebuffed a £1.4 billion ($1.8 billion) bid from family-owned engineering company Sidara.

London-listed Wood received an unsolicited preliminary proposal of 205 pence per share from Sidara, it said in a regulatory filing Wednesday after Bloomberg News revealed the takeover interest. Wood’s board reviewed the proposal with its financial advisers and unanimously rejected the offer, deciding it undervalued the company and its future prospects, it said.

The proposal represents a 24% premium to Wood’s closing price on Tuesday. Sidara has until June 5 to announce it’s making a firm takeover offer or walk away. Shares of Wood jumped as much as 26% on Wednesday, the biggest intraday gain since February 2023.

Sidara, formerly known as Dar Group, has been studying a possible deal for Wood as the Scottish firm’s stock price continues to decline, people with knowledge of the matter said earlier. Before Wednesday, Wood shares had fallen about 25% over the past 12 months.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Morgan Stanley are acting as joint financial advisers and corporate brokers to Wood.

The interest comes about a year after Apollo Global Management Inc. walked away from a possible takeover of Wood. The company had rejected multiple offers from Apollo before granting the buyout firm access to due diligence materials following a final bid last April of £1.66 billion, or 240 pence per share.

Last month, Wood investor Sparta Capital Management Ltd. urged Wood in a letter to undertake a strategic review and “actively seek alternative solutions” including a possible sale.

Founded in Beirut in 1956 as Dar Al-Handasah, Sidara is a global design and engineering firm with more than 300 offices in 60 countries, according to its website. It had revenues of $2.8 billion last year.

Sidara’s portfolio of businesses includes architecture firm Perkins&Will, project manager Currie & Brown, energy infrastructure designer Penspen, structural engineering services provider Maffeis and building consultancy Introba.

Last month, Sidara sold an interest of about 19% in Australian infrastructure construction firm Worley Ltd. via a block trade.

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