Private equity companies are circling supermarket group Sainsbury’s with a view to possibly launching bids of more than £7 billion, the Sunday Times reported.
American buyout giant Apollo is said to be running the rule over the supermarket group, the newspaper reported.
It remains in talks to join the Fortress-led consortium bidding for Morrisons and any involvement in that deal may preclude a move for Sainsbury’s, the report said, adding Apollo’s interest in Sainsbury’s is exploratory.
Morrisons said on Thursday its board would unanimously recommend US private equity group CD&R’s 285 pence a share offer worth £7bn and drop its previous recommendation for a £6.7bn bid from a consortium led by SoftBank owned Fortress.