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Barclay brothers set to sell a stake in Shop Direct | Barclay brothers set to sell a stake in Shop Direct |
(about 2 hours later) | |
The billionaire Barclay twins are considering selling a stake in their retail business Shop Direct. | The billionaire Barclay twins are considering selling a stake in their retail business Shop Direct. |
The brothers, who also own the Daily Telegraph and a string of hotels including the Ritz in London, are understood to be looking at selling as much as a quarter of their interest in Shop Direct, which owns the Littlewoods and Very.co.uk online retailers. | The brothers, who also own the Daily Telegraph and a string of hotels including the Ritz in London, are understood to be looking at selling as much as a quarter of their interest in Shop Direct, which owns the Littlewoods and Very.co.uk online retailers. |
The deal could value Shop Direct at more than £2bn according to Sky News, which first reported the potential sale. | The deal could value Shop Direct at more than £2bn according to Sky News, which first reported the potential sale. |
Sources told the Guardian that Sir David and Sir Frederick Barclay had been in talks to sell a 25% stake in Shop Direct last year and were keen to capitalise on the business’s return to profitability. | |
Profits rose 78% to £71.7m in the year to June 2015, its third consecutive year of profits after years of losses. The business is understood to be on track for another profits lift this year. | |
“They are not going to sell the Telegraph or the hotels, those are both iconic businesses, but Shop Direct is not a long-term hold. The turnaround is pretty well done and they could get some value off the table,” said one well-placed source. | “They are not going to sell the Telegraph or the hotels, those are both iconic businesses, but Shop Direct is not a long-term hold. The turnaround is pretty well done and they could get some value off the table,” said one well-placed source. |
Selling a stake in Shop Direct would be a highly unusual move for the Barclays who own all of their businesses outright. Floating part of the business on the stock market could be a possibility, but City sources said such a move was unlikely given the Barclays’ love of privacy. | Selling a stake in Shop Direct would be a highly unusual move for the Barclays who own all of their businesses outright. Floating part of the business on the stock market could be a possibility, but City sources said such a move was unlikely given the Barclays’ love of privacy. |
The company declined to comment. | The company declined to comment. |
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