LONDON, July 2, 2026, 14:05 BST
- Intertek traded at 5,805p/5,810p, just under 0.3% off this year’s 5,820p high.
- The leftover EQT cash part stands at 6,000p a share, after Intertek paid its 107.7p final dividend on June 24.
- That works out to about 3.3% gross upside to the cash offer, or around £292 million to £300 million based on issued shares right now.
- Latest Rule 8 filings put banks, some index funds and event-driven players trading close to £58. That’s well below the £60 cash mark.
Intertek Group plc (LON:ITRK) trades close to deal levels, though with some gap left.
The London-listed testing and certification group traded at 5,805p on the offer and 5,810p on the bid Thursday, broker data showed. Nearly 960,000 shares changed hands, with the market cap sitting at about £8.9 billion. Regular hours for the London Stock Exchange are 0800 to 1630 BST, so the quote landed within the usual session.
For merger arb desks, the main point is that EQT AB’s STO:EQT headline 6,107.7p offer isn’t the default comparison for new buyers anymore. Intertek’s 107.7p final dividend went ex-div on May 28 and got paid June 24, so buyers now mostly look at the 6,000p cash still on the table if the scheme goes through.
| Per-share measure | Pence | Investor read-through |
|---|---|---|
| Current sell quote | 5,805.0 | Roughly 3.36% under the £60 cash price |
| Current buy quote | 5,810.0 | Sits about 3.27% beneath the £60 cash part |
| EQT cash consideration | 6,000.0 | Cash payment investors expect from the deal |
| Headline total value | 6,107.7 | Figure counts the 107.7p dividend that eligible investors already got |
| AJ Bell year high | 5,820.0 | Shares are near the top for the year, but not above the deal cash yet |
The gap between Thursday’s price and Intertek’s £60 cash offer works out to about £292 million on the buy quote, or roughly £300 million on the sell, based on 153.9 million shares in issue. Intertek’s own offer document puts the share count at 153,931,794. Broker quotes had the stock at £58.05 to £58.10.
The spread shows what traders are pricing for execution risk left in the deal, including shareholder votes, court signoff, regulatory hurdles, and timing. The offer lays out that the scheme document should land within 28 days after the June 18 statement unless they push it back. Court and shareholder meetings are penciled in by Aug. 6. If all goes through, the scheme could kick in by Q4 2026 or Q1 2027.
Lots moving on the disclosure tape. Investegate’s Intertek page showed 50 RNS/EQS filings across July 1-2, most of them Takeover Code Rule 8s. The flow points to the stock trading like a cash-deal play instead of a normal opco.
| Latest disclosed holder/trader | Position or dealing shown | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| The Vanguard Group | 8.66 million shares, 5.63% | Big passive block in the mix |
| Societe Generale | 4.40% interests; 2.35% short positions | Dealer’s books go both ways here |
| L&G Asset Management | 2.59 million shares, 1.68% | UK fund vote base is still in play |
| Tudor Investment Corp | 2.04 million cash-settled long exposure; 47,699 short | Arb money working the spread |
| Geode Capital | 1.84 million shares, 1.19% | Index weight matters here above 1% |
| Intertek directors | 642,951 shares, 0.42%, irrevocably committed | Board locked up but stake stays small |
Goldman Sachs International, named as a connected principal trader for Intertek, reported buying 870,573 Intertek shares in sterling, paying between £58.00 and £58.1621, and selling 422,432 shares at £58.00 to £58.10 on July 1. The trading happened in a narrow range, but still under the cash bid level.
Intertek’s board backed the deal. The offer gives holders £60 in cash per share, and the board-approved final dividend won’t be cut from that amount. The cash part puts the fully diluted equity near £9.3 billion. Including the dividend, the deal value gets to about £9.5 billion.
EQT bumped its bid four times, with Reuters saying on June 18 that Intertek turned down the first three — £51.50, £54, and £58. The two sides agreed at £60 in cash plus a dividend. Morningstar analyst Ben Slupecki said Intertek’s market value was too low before EQT came in with its offers.
James Smith, founder and CIO at Palliser Capital, told Reuters the deal is a “positive outcome for shareholders.” A PrimeStone spokesperson said the firm, which owned 0.5% of Intertek, would support the transaction. Reuters
Intertek CEO André Lacroix said the deal gives “cash certainty today.” Matthias Wittkowski, global head of services at EQT Private Equity, said EQT is “delighted to have reached an agreement” to buy Intertek. Investegate
Stocks moved higher in broad trade. The FTSE 100 (INDEXFTSE:UKX) added 0.5% to 10,532.93 by 1153 GMT, according to Reuters. The FTSE 250 slipped 0.2%. Intertek’s stock is now trading more on whether the £60 cash bid goes through on time than on the index move.
