Shares in Dalata suspended pending takeover talks

Fiona Reddan

Shares in hotel group Dalata were temporarily suspended from the junior markets of both the London and Irish Stock Exchanges this morning, pending acquisition talks after Dalata confirmed that it is " in exclusive discussions in relation to the potential acquisition of the Moran Bewley Hotel Group".

In a statement this morning, Dalata said that such an acquisition would constitute a reverse takeover and hence would be conditional on the consent of shareholders. As a result, Dalata’s shares, trading at €2.89, were suspended at from trading pending the conclusion of discussions in relation to this deal.

Reports in the media over the weekend indicated that Dalata will buy the Moran Bewley Hotel group, which owns 10 hotels including the Red Cow Moran Hotel in west Dublin and Bewley’s in Dublin 4, for about €450 million.

However while Dalata confirmed the talks, it said that “there can be no certainty at this time that a transaction will proceed and we will update shareholders in due course”.

Dalata, which was founded in 2007 by former Jury’s Doyle CEO Pat McCann, is the largest hotel operator in Ireland, operating 38 hotels with almost 6,000 bedrooms. It operates 11 hotels under lease agreements, one hotel under a long term operating agreement and 24 hotels under short term management agreements.