London, July 6, 2026, 23:03 BST
- DCC plc LON:DCC ended at 6,155p, up 1.1%, after a regular London Stock Exchange session.
- The stock sits 370p below the 6,525p cash leg of the KKR-Energy Capital Partners proposal.
- Fidelity’s stated £70 cash floor is 13.7% above Monday’s close.
- Forecasts point to steady EBIT growth, leaving valuation — not near-term earnings shock — at the centre of the bid fight.
DCC plc LON:DCC closed Monday at 6,155p, up 65p, or 1.1%, with volume below its 65-day average, according to Wall Street Journal market data. The London Stock Exchange session ran as normal, from 08:00 to 16:30 BST, and had finished by the dateline time.
The share price has not closed the gap to the possible bid. KKR & Co. NYSE:KKR and Energy Capital Partners have proposed 6,525p in cash per share, plus DCC’s proposed 147.22p final dividend, giving a total package of 6,672.22p for holders entitled to that dividend. The consortium has until 1700 BST on July 8 to make a firm offer or walk away under Irish takeover rules.
| Price reference | Pence per share | Gap to Monday close | Premium to Monday close |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monday close | 6,155.00 | — | — |
| Cash leg of possible offer | 6,525.00 | 370.00p | 6.0% |
| Cash plus final dividend | 6,672.22 | 517.22p | 8.4% |
| Fidelity cash floor | 7,000.00 | 845.00p | 13.7% |
The dividend line matters for arbitrage funds. DCC traded ex-dividend on May 28 and Davy lists the dividend pay date as July 23; DCC’s results said the 147.22p final dividend was payable to shareholders on the register at May 29, subject to AGM approval. For new buyers now, the cleaner spread is to the 6,525p cash leg, not to the full 6,672.22p package.
The bid gap is being held open by shareholder resistance. Fidelity International funds own 6.9% of DCC, making Fidelity the company’s largest shareholder, The Irish Times reported. Alex Wright, portfolio manager of Fidelity’s special situation and special values funds, said he “would not accept anything below £70 in cash per share.” The Irish Times
Other large holders have pushed the same line. Alliance News, citing the Financial Times, reported that Alessandro Dicorrado, a UK equity manager at Ninety One plc LON:N91, said: “I don’t like the price.” Matt Bennison, head of UK equities at Aviva Investors, part of Aviva plc LON:AV, said the offer “significantly undervalues” DCC. Morningstar
The data behind the resistance is not a one-quarter earnings story. DCC’s May results showed continuing adjusted operating profit up 3.6% to £634.0 million, continuing adjusted EPS up 9.9% to 438.1p, free cash flow of £689.6 million and ROCE of 16.8%. Chief Executive Donal Murphy said DCC remained “on track to deliver our £830 million operating profit ambition by 2030,” while the company said that ambition was not a profit forecast. Investegate
MarketScreener forecasts show the base case as slow improvement, with EBIT rising from £638.7 million in fiscal 2026 to £658.5 million in fiscal 2027 and £682.2 million in fiscal 2028. Net debt is forecast to fall to £876 million in fiscal 2027 and £676 million in fiscal 2028.
| DCC metric | FY2026 | FY2027 forecast | FY2028 forecast |
|---|---|---|---|
| Net sales | £15.44 bln | £16.49 bln | £16.57 bln |
| EBIT | £638.7 mln | £658.5 mln | £682.2 mln |
| EBT | £374.1 mln | £445.2 mln | £480.2 mln |
| Net debt | £1.08 bln | £876 mln | £676 mln |
On earnings, the bid does not look like a large multiple step-up. WSJ/FactSet data put DCC’s FY2027 EPS estimate at £5.06 and FY2028 at £5.40. That makes Monday’s close about 12.2 times FY2027 EPS, the 6,525p cash leg about 12.9 times, and Fidelity’s £70 line about 13.8 times.
DCC’s own calendar gives investors another date after the takeover deadline: an AGM trading statement on July 16. The same AGM is where shareholders are due to vote on the final dividend, which DCC has proposed at 147.22p per share.
