Executives' charge for Goldshield fizzles out

The prospect of a takeover battle at generic drugs group Goldshield diminished yesterday when the group's non-executive directors said they not had a better offer than the 440p a share approach from its former boss.

The company's share price jumped on Tuesday when speculation increased that Goldshield's executive management team was set to launch a counter bid to the £162m offer received from former chief executive, Ajit Patel, and the Israeli Fuhrer family, which owns another generic pharmaceuticals company, Neopharm.

Goldshield's stock slipped by 3.9 per cent yesterday, however, when its independent directors said that management, including its chief executive Rakesh Patel, has not yet submitted a bid higher than the Neopharm offer. Its management had approached the board about an offer in January, but it was too low to offer to shareholders. A further offer was made in July, but it again fell below the 440p a share bid made by the Neopharm.

"It looks like a done deal," said Sahil Shan, an analyst at Brewin Dolphin. "If the executive directors have so far been struggling to get close to 440p then I'm not sure what's going to change".