Private equity giant Apollo has been running the rule over Marks & Spencer, saying it considered the retailer to be “a bargain”.
It is unclear whether Apollo’s interest has been dampened by the recent surge in M&S’s share price, which has risen by 24% since the company forecast this month that underlying profit would be in the region of £500m this year, valuing the retailer at £4.7bn.
M&S is sitting on £2bn of property, although much of this is located on high streets where footfall is in decline. The retailer plans to shrink its portfolio of stores selling both clothes and food by 30% to 180 outlets.
