FTSE 100 property firm slams ‘opportunistic, one-sided, inadequate’ takeover offer
Real estate investment trust Segro has issued a strongly-worded rebuttal of the £12.6bn takeover bid tabled by its US rival.
In a scathing updated to investors, the FTSE 100 property firm branded Prologis’s offer “opportunistic, one-sided and inadequate”, after the American investment behemoth proposed combining the two companies into a mammoth investment trust last month.
Segro rejected Prologis’ 925p per share bid last month, though the approach sent the firm’s shares soaring by nearly 18 per cent.
But the FTSE 100 company dismantled the takeover offer in a presentation to shareholders on Wednesday, accusing Prologis of significantly undervaluing its value.
The US real estate firm swooped for Segro because it wanted to “take advantage” of the hit its share price had taken as a result of the Iran war, chief executive David Sleath said.
Segro has invested heavily into data centres in recent years and Sleath said he was “not surprised” by Prologis’ attempt to cash in on this portfolio, which he said was far superior to the US firm’s own.
Buyer wants to ‘materially dilute’ value
The UK-based firm also accused its US suitor of proposing to “materially dilute” its shareholders’ exposure to its property portfolio.
The offer would see Segro investors exchange 100 per cent of their shares in the firm for a “materially lower shareholding in Prologis’ different portfolio,” it said.
Though the takeover offer represented a nearly 25 per cent premium on Segro’s closing share price at the time of the bid, the FTSE 100 firm said it is poised for a series of significant uplifts in its value.
Segro cut its net asset value to 905p per share on Wednesday, down from 925p. But the company said it expects to take a 103p per share boost from its £1.6bn industrial and logistics pipeline.
The firm will also gain another 139p per share due to its £2.5bn data centre pipeline, it said.
Segro shares slip
Sleath also criticised Prologis for failing to include the value of other benefits it would take from the acquisition, like lower tax costs. “Our shareholders should be paid for this,” he said.
“Combining with Prologis would materially dilute Segro’s shareholders’ exposure to its industrials, logistics and data centre development upside opportunity, exchanging full ownership of SEGRO’s unique and irreplicable portfolio for a materially lower shareholding in a different, more US-focused portfolio,” he told investors.
The property firm took £53m in new headline rent in the first half of 2026, compared to £31m last year, in what it described as a “very encouraging start to the year”.
Shares in Segro slipped one per cent on Wednesday to 868p, leaving the stock up 22 per cent in the year to date.
A spokesperson for Prologis said: “We note the announcement by SEGRO. As we have communicated, a combination with Prologis is the best option for maximising long-term value for SEGRO shareholders and wider stakeholders.
“Unlocking the full potential of SEGRO’s assets requires the capital, data centre expertise, customer relationships and platform capabilities that Prologis can bring at scale.”