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Mobico Board Set to Back 46p Cash Takeover Offer

Mobico's independent directors intend to recommend a 46p-a-share cash takeover by a vehicle owned by its largest shareholder's family group and an infrastructure fund, saying its debt and 2027 refinancing risk make a standalone future too uncertain.

Mobico Group (LON: MCG), the transport operator formerly known as National Express, has agreed a 46p-a-share cash takeover that its independent directors intend to recommend. The offer values its equity at about £308m and an enterprise value, which adds net debt, of about £2.3bn.

Shares closed yesterday at 39.38p and were quoted at about 44p this morning, up 11.7% on that close. That is 2p, or about 4.3%, below the offer. They closed at 39.3p on the 21st of October, against 29.7p the day before.

MCG.LSE

The bidder, Leita Mobility, is owned by Autobuses de León, which is 50.1% held by the Cosmen family’s CMC Group and 49.9% by infrastructure investor Asterion’s Fund III. CMC already owns about 26% of Mobico, though that stake cannot vote at the Court Meeting that will decide the deal.

The 46p is 55.1% above the 29.7p close on the 20th of October and 93.3% above the 23.8p close on the 3rd of August, the day before Autobuses de León made an unsolicited 38p proposal. It is also 89.3% above the six-month volume-weighted average price, the average weighted by shares traded, of 24.3p.

Line chart of Mobico's share price from April to October 2026 against the 46p cash offer level
Mobico’s shares jumped on the 21st of October and have since moved towards the 46p cash offer.

The board’s case rests on debt. Net debt was £1,134m at the 31st of March, and covenant gearing, the ratio lenders test, stood at 2.9 times against a 1.5 to 2.0 times target. About £230m of US private placement notes fall due in May and June 2027. Chair Phil White said:

We believe the offer represents a good outcome for Mobico’s stakeholders and provides shareholders with value and certainty.

Phil White, chair, Mobico

The scheme needs a majority in number and 75% by value of votes cast. Irrevocable commitments cover about 26.4% of the shares, but about 26.2% of that sits with holders who cannot vote at the Court Meeting. Only about 0.2%, held by the independent directors, is committed to vote for the scheme. A scheme document is due within 28 days. Completion is not expected before the first half of 2027, after court sanction and antitrust approvals, and the 2p gap likely reflects that wait and those conditions.

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