The Macquarie Group Ltd (ASX: MQG) share price has started the week in the red. The negative direction follows further developments in the bid for Sydney Airport Holdings Pty Ltd (ASX: SYD) on Monday.
At the time of writing, shares in the financial giant are down 0.3% to $163.94 apiece. The latest attempts to acquire Australia's largest airport operator have dismantled investor's hopes of a potential counterbid from Macquarie.
Let's take a closer look.
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Looking less likely
Macquarie is always on the hunt for high-quality assets. More recently, Macquarie Infrastructure and Real Assets have acquired previously ASX-listed telecommunications company Vocus, and waste management company, Bingo Industries.
The sheer scale of Macquarie's investment arm placed it on the table as a potential counterbidder to the Sydney Aviation Alliance consortium. However, this seems less likely based on the information contained in the consortium's revised and rejected bid today.
According to the update, the consortium has brought onboard Macquarie Capital as an adviser. Although it doesn't completely rule out the possibility, it dramatically reduces the likelihood that Macquarie Group will be throwing out a bid. Consequently, the Macquarie share price is moving lower this afternoon.
Not accepting an 'opportunistic bid'
On top of all this, it has become evident that Sydney Airport management is not playing around. The board rejected the new $8.45 per staple security offer today (up from $8.25), still considering it opportunistic in light of the COVID-19 pandemic.
However, not all shareholders of Sydney Airport are on the same page. According to reports, Sydney Airport's largest single shareholder, Unisuper, considers $8.45 per security to be a fair price for opening up to due diligence and negotiations.
Macquarie share price snapshot
While Macquarie may not be in this race, its share price has climbed higher in recent weeks as it focuses on other assets. On 5 August, the investment bank announced it had finalised an agreement with Enel. This agreement was in relation to acquiring a 40% interest in Open Fiber for ~AUD$3.41 billion. The company is Italy's largest fibre-to-the-home network, boasting more than 12 million households.
Finally, the Macquarie Group share price has increased 29.9% during the past 12 months. As a result, the financial giant now commands a market capitalisation of $60.46 billion.
