Profile: Who is THG\u2019s CEO Matt Moulding?<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\nSelkirk, which floated in November, was formed to acquire undervalued companies or businesses in the consumer eCommerce, technology and digital media sectors.<\/p>\n
It has the backing from Angus Monro, a former non-exec director at THG, and former Tesco CEO Terry Leahy.<\/p>\n
It is also backed by McDonald\u2019s Belerion Capital as well as a subsidiary of Kelso Group, an activist investor that targeted the removal of THG chair Lord Charles Allen last year over his \u2018lack of action and clarity\u2019.<\/p>\n
In dismissing Selkirk\u2019s approach, THG said: \u201cThe majority of the consideration offered was in the form of newly issued Selkirk shares, and the remainder of the consideration would have been payable in cash from a new equity and debt issuance, which was largely unfunded and without appropriate detail on its source.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe board considered that the proposal fundamentally undervalued Myprotein and its prospects, and in addition carried significant execution complexity and risks, in particular the ability of Selkirk to raise sufficient funding.<\/p>\n
\u201cOn this basis, the proposal was unequivocally rejected by the board. THG confirms that there has been no further engagement with Selkirk since the proposal was rejected.\u201d<\/p>\n
The precise value of Myprotein is debatable. It sits inside THG Nutrition, which has been valued by one UK investment bank at \u00a3775m. The same bank indicated that in a bid situation the brand could attract an eye-watering premium price of \u00a31.5bn.<\/p>\n
However, one industry analyst I spoke to said \u00a31.5bn was \u2018way off the mark\u2019, especially when you consider THG\u2019s market cap is currently just over \u00a3400m.<\/p>\n
\u201cIs it a real bid when two of the people making it are ex-THG?\u201d asked the industry expert.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m not saying this is the case here but football agents have been known to plant stories to try and secure better deals for their clients.\u201d<\/p>\n
Other people I\u2019ve spoken to have scoffed at the suggestion but relationships between Selkirk and THG appear to be cordial.<\/p>\n
In a statement Selkirk said they \u2018respectfully disagree\u2019 with THG but thanked the board for \u2018considering our proposal\u2019 and added: \u201cMyprotein is a world class brand with tremendous growth prospects, but which is currently dramatically undervalued by the UK market.\u201d<\/p>\n
According to Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell, \u00a0we may not have heard the last of the story.<\/p>\n
\u201c<\/strong>While THG has rejected Selkirk\u2019s approach, this might have fired the starting gun for other interested parties to think about making a move,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\u00a0<\/p>\n
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