Britain On Sale, Part II: The Four Companies I Think Could Be Bought Next

The takeover boom isn’t over. These are the next names on my list.

Britain’s stock market had become a bargain basement.

That’s what I argued last week, and the takeover wave continues with another one gone just yesterday. SEGRO, one of the FTSE’s largest property companies, agreed a £14.3 billion takeover by US logistics giant Prologis.

Overseas buyers have realised what many British investors have been saying for years. London is systemtically undervalued. It has become one of, if not the cheapest developed stock markets in the world. High-quality businesses are changing hands at valuations that simply don’t exist elsewhere.

So who is next?

That’s what we are looking at today.

Dr Martens, maybe? A globally recognised brand that has plummeted in value. Same goes for Burberry Group. Harbour Energy, perhaps? This oil major is looking decidedly cheap, and an oil squeeze could be round the corner. After the plethora of easyJet bids, why not Jet2? How about the builders, or the brewers, even? Or the ludicrously cheap retailers?

Every company I mention has to pass two tests. First, there has to be a plausible strategic reason why somebody else might want to own it. Second, it has to be a business I’d be happy to own even if no bid ever arrives.

If the current feeding frenzy in the UK stock market continues, they won’t be here long. At least, not in their current form.

So here they are - the four companies I think could be next.