Sky - Response to Comcast timetable extension

[idpickering]

Sky notes yesterday's announcement by Comcast of an extension to its offer timetable.

The recommended Comcast Offer will remain open for acceptance until 1.00pm (London time) on 12 September 2018, unless extended further.

https://www.investegate.co.uk/sky-plc-- ... 00106258Y/

[Gengulphus]

The Comcast announcement that Sky notes is much more informative, though I think at least one part of it needs taking with more than a pinch of salt:

Sky Shareholders who have not yet accepted the Offer should act as soon as possible...

IMHO that is offerorspeak for "It is in Comcast's interests that you, the Sky shareholders, should act as soon as possible, so we urge you to take action rather than waiting and seeing". Given that the only actual action shareholders can take is to accept an offer and Comcast's offer is currently the highest on the table, that is indeed in Comcast's interests - but whether it's in Sky shareholders' interests is another matter entirely!

4. Level of acceptances and interests in relevant securities

As at 1.00 p.m. (London time) on 22 August 2018 (being the First Closing Date of the Offer), Comcast Bidco had received valid acceptances of the Offer in respect of a total of 3,843,977 Sky Shares (representing approximately 0.21 per cent. of the issued ordinary share capital of Sky) which Comcast Bidco may count towards satisfaction of the Acceptance Condition.

Fortunately, it does seem that the vast majority of Sky shareholders understand what's in their interests! Though some acceptances may simply be in the pipeline, e.g. because individual shareholders holding in nominee accounts have told their brokers that they want to accept, but the brokers are still collecting responses in order to submit one pooled acceptance to the company near the end of the process.

The announcement also updates progress on Comcast's arrangements to have the financing they need to pay the takeover price, should they win this takeover battle. Routine stuff, I think, but an area on which no news would be bad (or at least disquieting) news for Comcast shareholders.

Gengulphus

[Alaric]

There appears to be another extension. I'm continuing to sit on the fence until whichever offer becomes compulsory rather than accept either bid, but what if all shareholders do this?

[absolutezero]

There appears to be another extension. I'm continuing to sit on the fence until whichever offer becomes compulsory rather than accept either bid, but what if all shareholders do this?

After Saturday it goes to a sealed bids situation overseen by the Panel on Takeovers and Mergers.

[OLTB]

There appears to be another extension. I'm continuing to sit on the fence until whichever offer becomes compulsory rather than accept either bid, but what if all shareholders do this?

After Saturday it goes to a sealed bids situation overseen by the Panel on Takeovers and Mergers.

Just to reconfirm what absolutezero has said, on the BBC Business news website https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/business-45508062 (story is at 10:05am if you need to search), the UK's Takeover Panel have said the one-day auction starts at 16.00 tomorrow on 21st September and finishes 24 hours later. There are a maximum of three rounds and Fox and Comcast can make either sealed or open bids or choose not to increase their current offers.

Cheers, OLTB.

[pyad]

Full document here

https://www.investegate.co.uk/takeover- ... 52083971B/

It has proven highly successful to hang on to SKY since the first bid back in Dec 16 which was from Fox at 1,075p. That figure seems paltry now in view of subsequent events and the current market price of around 1,580p. Despite SKY suspending dividends for much of that time, the capital reward will far more than compensate and thus enable eventual reinvestment of the bid cash into higher yielding HYP shares, producing a substantially higher income than SKY did.

If I had any pity, I would pity the tinkerers who sold out earlier, the "HYPers" (using the term extremely loosely) who think they can beat market trading. They can't and never will.

[TurboukToo2]

"They can't and never will."

Although to be fair I tinkered my way out of a full capital loss on Carillion....

[pyad]

"They can't and never will."

Although to be fair I tinkered my way out of a full capital loss on Carillion....

I was fairly sure someone who thinks they are clever would come up with that. In fact I almost pre-empted being Carillioned by giving my reasons in advance but thought I'd wait to see. Sure enough, out this comment popped within seconds.

Long term the win from successful HYP shares by doing nothing and market trading, dwarfs the losses from the unsuccessful including very rare total failures like CLLN. This is the key point that so many don't get.

[Alaric]

including very rare total failures like CLLN.

Given the creative nature of accounting still available, can one be really sure that total failures are that rare? That's particularly true for those companies that delude Doris into believing she has a high yield by returning her capital by way of borrowing to pay dividends.

Moderator Message:
No more discussion of Carillion, please! A mild digression is one thing, major thread drift quite another. Let's switch back to the topic of Sky. -- MDW1954

[absolutezero]

There are a maximum of three rounds and Fox and Comcast can make either sealed or open bids or choose not to increase their current offers.

[/quote]
This may sound absurd but the IC is reporting that there is nothing in the 48 pages of rules that stops one of them saying 'we will always bid 20p more than them'.

[TUK020]

There are a maximum of three rounds and Fox and Comcast can make either sealed or open bids or choose not to increase their current offers.

This may sound absurd but the IC is reporting that there is nothing in the 48 pages of rules that stops one of them saying 'we will always bid 20p more than them'.

nothing absurd about that, it is what the auctioneers want to achieve. It's the bidders' shareholders that need to be worried about that

[organum]

Is there a method of watching the auction?
It should be fascinating since there are only three rounds.

[absolutezero]

There are a maximum of three rounds and Fox and Comcast can make either sealed or open bids or choose not to increase their current offers.

This may sound absurd but the IC is reporting that there is nothing in the 48 pages of rules that stops one of them saying 'we will always bid 20p more than them'.

nothing absurd about that, it is what the auctioneers want to achieve. It's the bidders' shareholders that need to be worried about that

Totally absurd.
If one will always pay 20p more than the other then the other can keep bidding until the bid price of the opposite party reaches infinity!
Great news for me as a Sky shareholder!

[PinkDalek]

Especially if both say they'll always bid 20p more than the previous bid, without a cap.

[pyad]

Is there a method of watching the auction?
It should be fascinating since there are only three rounds.

No, it's a sealed bid job, more like a tender arrangement. The exact wording from the doc:

...It is expected that the increased bids (if any) lodged during the auction procedure will not be publicly announced by any of the parties other than as set out below.

As soon as practicable following completion of the auction procedure on the evening of 22 September 2018, the Panel Executive will make an announcement in accordance with Rule 30.1 of the Code (which will also be published on the Panel's website). That announcement will set out the prices of the offers to be announced by each offeror following the conclusion of the auction procedure...

[pyad]

Especially if both say they'll always bid 20p more than the previous bid, without a cap.

Can't happen. From the doc

...Formula bids are not permitted in any round...

I have rated SKY a Hold since the latest dividend suspension.

[PinkDalek]

Thanks but I was commenting on the reported IC comment and we all know what many Fools think of them nowadays.

We too have continued to hold, without receiving nor offering advice.

[pyad]

This may sound absurd but the IC is reporting that there is nothing in the 48 pages of rules that stops one of them saying 'we will always bid 20p more than them'.

If that's what the IC says it is wrong - see my quote from the doc above.

[Breelander]

Breaking news:

Comcast has triumphed in the auction to buy Sky plc for £30.45bn in the biggest takeover ever seen in Europe's media industry.

https://news.sky.com/story/comcast-outb ... y-11505655

Comcast offered £17.28 per share, while the price offered by Fox was £15.67 per share, according to an official statement from the Takeover Panel.

https://www.cnbc.com/2018/09/22/sky-com ... ction.html

[absolutezero]

£17.28.
I guess they will reach that on Monday.
If so, sell or wait for nature to take its course?