London, May 18, 2026, 12:00 BST
- Intertek was trading near 5,600 pence, remaining under EQT’s £60 a share cash offer.
- The May 20 AGM and EQT’s firm-offer deadline on June 11 are now the next key dates for the company.
- Analysts say the bid lines up with industry numbers, but the spread in the share price suggests investors aren’t sold on the deal going through.
Intertek Group shares slipped on Monday while the FTSE 100 advanced. The move kept a clear gap between Intertek’s market price and the last cash offer from Sweden’s EQT.
Intertek slipped 0.2% to 5,605 pence on a delayed Hargreaves Lansdown quote, with the FTSE 100 up 0.1% at 10,208.69. The shares traded around 7% below the £60 cash offer from EQT, leaving a spread that traders typically read as a sign the market still doubts the deal will close.
The gap matters now that Intertek isn’t trading just on revenue or margins. After the board said it would likely back EQT’s final proposal, shares have turned into a deal-risk play. Investors are focused on due diligence and the UK takeover process.
EQT is offering £60 a share in cash for Intertek, bumping up its bid after earlier offers at £51.50, £54, and £58 were turned down. Intertek holders could still get a final dividend of up to 107.7 pence a share if approved at the company’s May 20 annual meeting, on top of the cash offer.
Intertek’s board reiterated last week that it still backs its own plan, but said EQT’s all-cash proposal was at a level it would likely recommend if a firm bid comes in. The deadline for EQT to make a formal offer or withdraw has now been pushed to 5 p.m. on June 11.
Intertek runs more than 1,000 labs and offices in over 100 countries, offering assurance, testing, inspection and certification services. The company checks that products, systems and supply chains meet standards, putting it in line with sector rivals Bureau Veritas and SGS.
Morningstar’s Ben Slupecki said in a note Monday the bid “makes sense” for Intertek, with the £60 offer coming in 21% over his £49.50 fair value call. But Slupecki called the price “expensive”, pointing to an implied EV/EBITA of about 12x, roughly matching Bureau Veritas and SGS. Morningstar
The board can point to that peer math after the quick turnaround. In April, Chief Executive André Lacroix set out Intertek’s plan to look at splitting the business into “two specialist” global ATIC companies, breaking out testing and assurance from energy and infrastructure. That review is now on hold while EQT does its due diligence. Intertek
European stocks traded lower Monday as inflation worries hung over the market, driven by oil and yields. The STOXX 600 had lost 0.5% earlier, Reuters said. Michele Morganti at Generali Investments called high rates “another negative for risk.” Reuters
But the trade has risk. Intertek’s statement says there is “no certainty” an offer happens, even if some or all preconditions are met or waived. If EQT pulls out, the stock could drop back toward pre-deal levels instead of moving close to the bid price, as Slupecki warned Monday. Investegate
Right now the stock sits in between both sides. Bulls point to a cash exit of £60 plus the dividend. Sceptics focus on the conditional offer, wait time, and a buyer still doing due diligence. Next up is the AGM on Wednesday, then June 11.
