Proactive Investors - Hargreaves Lansdown (LON:HRGV) PLC (LSE:HL.) said it would be willing to accept a new cash offer priced at 1,140p that is had received from a consortium made up of private equity companies CVC and Nordic Capital, and the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority.
This proposed offer follows three previous approaches from the consortium in recent months, the FTSE 100 investment and pensions group said, the last of which at 985p per share was rejected last month.
The HL board said the latest offer "would provide the certainty of value in cash to shareholders" and so it has "decided to engage" with the consortium and provide access for due diligence to be carried out.
Directors said they have indicated to the consortium that the new bid is "at a value that the board would be willing to recommend unanimously" to shareholders, should a firm offer be made.
Part of the offer comprises a 30p final dividend, with an option for shareholders to elect for a "rollover equity alternative" to co-invest in the consortium's unlisted acquisition vehicle.
Less than an hour earlier, a Sky News story had indicated that "detailed talks" with the consortium were expected to produce a new offer price of around 1,050p.
Shares in the FTSE 100-listed company, which were trading flat around 1,071p before the Sky story emerged, spiked to above 1,112p before dropping 2.5% to 1,048p and then spiking again.
The put-up-or-shut-up deadline, which was due at 5pm tomorrow, has been extended to 19 July.
Co-founder and largest shareholder Peter Hargreaves said he was open to backing a take-private deal, but not at the price of the May offer.
Hargreaves, who owns around a 19.8% shareholding, was reported to have been mulling taking the company private himself, with the share price having fallen more than 60% since the end of 2019.
Fellow co-founder Stephen Lansdown, who holds a 5% stake, also questioned if the level of the May offer was sufficient.