Comcast outbids Fox to buy Sky for £30bn. Comcast emerged as the winner of an extraordinary battle for control of Sky (SKY) after it defeated the combined forces of 21st Century Fox and Disney in an extraordinary 24-hour auction. The colossus of the US cable industry, which also owns the Hollywood studio Universal and the broadcaster NBC, made a blind bid £17.28 per share for Sky, valuing the company at nearly £30bn. Comcast came out comfortably ahead of Fox, which was effectively controlled in the 24-hour sale by Disney. The Star Wars maker has agreed to buy most of Fox, including its 39pc stake in Sky, in a separate $71bn (£54bn) deal.
Two of Ryanair’s biggest investors add to demands for change after AGM ‘wake-up call’. Ryanair Holdings (RYA) is facing an unprecedented surge in investor anger as two of its biggest shareholders added their voices to demands for an overhaul of corporate governance. One of the airline’s largest investors told The Sunday Telegraph that this week’s bruising annual general meeting should serve as a wake-up call to the Ryanair board. The City was prepared to intervene if the company failed to act, the shareholder said. Another top 10 shareholder called for the appointment of a “person with the right gravitas” to challenge Michael O’Leary, the company boss, as senior independent director.
Hornby chief’s payoff ‘out of line’. Investors at troubled toymaker Hornby (HRN) have been urged to rebel against a golden goodbye for its former boss. Shareholder advisory group ISS has recommended that shareholders vote down the remuneration report at next week’s AGM after the troubled Aim-listed toymaker provided “no sufficient explanation” for Steve Cooke’s surge in pay last year.
Mike Ashley attacks ‘greedy’ House of Fraser store landlords. boss Mike Ashley has launched a fresh attack on “greedy landlords” who refuse to accept his demands on renegotiated House of Fraser leases. Announcing the closure of stores in Edinburgh, Hull and Swindon, Mr Ashley warned of further closures if landlords refused to agree new terms. “I am calling on everybody to pull together, including landlords and local authorities, in order to help to save as many House of Fraser stores and jobs as possible,” Mr Ashley said.
BT approaches Worldpay boss Jansen to be new chief executive. BT Group (BT.A) is considering the appointment of Philip Jansen, a close ally of its outgoing boss Gavin Patterson and its former chairman Sir Mike Rake, as its new chief executive. Mr Jansen, 51, who last week announced his departure as joint-chief executive of the payments processor Worldpay Group (WPG), where Sir Mike is senior independent director, has emerged as a top candidate in the contest to lead Britain’s former state telecoms monopoly.
Drax targets Scottish Power deal to end subsidy addiction. Drax Group (DRX) is planning to reignite its spark by snapping up a package of Scottish Power’s assets as the power-generation giant races to break its addiction to coal and biomass subsidies. The owner of the North Yorkshire site is understood to be in talks to buy a string of power units from the Big Six company which include gas-fired power, hydro power and small-scale biomass. Both companies declined to comment.
