Frasers Group Shares Slip Into the Red Despite Accent Group Takeover Offer

Frasers Group (LON: FRAS) shares opened sharply higher on Monday morning before reversing course to trade in negative territory, as investors weighed a new all-cash takeover bid for Australian footwear and apparel retailer Accent Group (ASX: AX1) against mounting acquisition costs for Mike Ashley’s sprawling retail empire.

The Mike Ashley-controlled group announced via the Australian Securities Exchange that it is launching an on-market takeover offer for all Accent shares it does not already own, at a price of A$0.65 per share.

Frasers currently holds a 22.90% stake in Accent, meaning the bid — which carries no conditions — would cost approximately A$316 million, or around £166 million, to acquire the remaining interest.

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Frasers shares opened the session at 815p, touching an intraday high of 819.5p before selling pressure took hold. By mid-session, the stock had erased all early gains to trade at 787p — down 5p, or 0.63%, from Friday’s closing price of 792p.

The pullback suggests the market has grown cautious about Frasers’ accelerating acquisition appetite. The Accent bid comes just days after the group unveiled a far larger voluntary public takeover offer for German fashion giant Hugo Boss, valued at approximately €2.67 billion.

Together, the two deals represent a significant deployment of capital as Frasers pushes ahead with its so-called “elevation strategy.”

The Accent offer period officially opens on 30 June 2026 and closes on 30 July 2026, with Barrenjoey Markets acting as broker. RPC is advising Frasers on English law, with Lander & Rogers providing Australian law counsel.