--- title: "EasyJet Rejects Castlelake's Fourth Takeover Bid at 650 Pence a Share" description: "EasyJet's board rejected a fourth takeover proposal from U.S. investment firm Castlelake — a 650-pence-a-share, all-cash offer valuing the airline at about £4.9 billion — saying it undervalues the company. But it opened its books for the first time, leaving room for a higher bid before a July 5 deadline. The shares jumped about 5%." category: "Markets" category_url: https://boursel.com/category/markets author: "Marcus Feldman" published: 2026-06-25T11:42:00.000Z updated: 2026-06-25T11:42:00.000Z canonical: https://boursel.com/article/easyjet-rejects-castlelake-s-fourth-takeover-bid-at-650-pence-a-share tags: ["easyjet", "castlelake", "m-and-a", "airlines", "uk-markets"] --- # EasyJet Rejects Castlelake's Fourth Takeover Bid at 650 Pence a Share EasyJet's board rejected a fourth takeover proposal from U.S. investment firm Castlelake — a 650-pence-a-share, all-cash offer valuing the airline at about £4.9 billion — saying it undervalues the company. But it opened its books for the first time, leaving room for a higher bid before a July 5 deadline. The shares jumped about 5%. EasyJet has said no for a fourth time — but, for the first time, left the door ajar. The budget airline's board rejected a 650-pence-a-share, all-cash takeover proposal from the U.S. investment firm Castlelake, valuing easyJet at roughly £4.9 billion, while agreeing to share some commercial information in the hope of drawing out a higher offer, [Bloomberg reported](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-06-25/easyjet-rejects-sweetened-castlelake-offer-questions-ownership). ## Four bids, four rejections Castlelake's pursuit began on June 12 at 560p a share, followed by 600p and 625p, before the 650p proposal landed and was rebuffed, [according to Proactive Investors](https://www.proactiveinvestors.co.uk/companies/news/1094476/easyjet-rejects-fourth-castlelake-bid-but-opens-books-and-extends-takeover-deadline-1094476.html). At 650p, the offer is roughly 65% above easyJet's 394.2p share price on May 28, before the approach became public. The stock had closed at 539p on June 24 and rose about 5% to around 567p after the rejection and the board's signal that it would engage — a sign the market sees a deal as plausible at a higher price. Large shareholders have reportedly told the Financial Times they would engage at 700p or more. ## Who is bidding Castlelake is a Minneapolis-based alternative investment manager, not an airline — it runs about $25 billion in assets and has invested heavily in aviation over two decades. Because European Union rules require an EU-based airline to be majority-owned and controlled by EU nationals, Castlelake structured its bid vehicle so that 49% would be held by Castlelake and co-investors including Brookfield Asset Management, and 51% by two EU nationals: Peter Bellew, a veteran airline executive who has held senior roles at Ryanair, easyJet and Malaysia Airlines, and the aviation investor Mark Breen. ## Why the board said no EasyJet's directors gave two reasons, [per RTÉ](https://www.rte.ie/news/business/2026/0625/1580235-easyjet-rejects-castlelake-offer-again/): the price "substantially" undervalues the company, and they have concerns about the unusual ownership structure and whether the deal could actually clear regulatory and other conditions without a value-sapping delay. Granting limited due diligence stops well short of a recommendation, but signals the gap may be narrowing. Under UK takeover rules, Castlelake now has until July 5 — a deadline extended by nine days — to make a firm offer or walk away for six months. ## EasyJet's position EasyJet is no distressed target. It reported headline pre-tax profit of about £665 million for the year to September 2025, up 9%, on revenue near £10.1 billion, and ended the year with a net cash position. Its growing holidays business has diversified earnings beyond flying. But it is squeezed in Europe's low-cost market: Ryanair undercuts it on costs at greater scale, Wizz Air competes hard in the east, and legacy carriers have trimmed short-haul costs through low-cost subsidiaries. That competitive bind is part of why a financial buyer sees value others might unlock. ## The bigger picture A successful Castlelake deal would be a notable first — a U.S. private-capital vehicle taking control of a major European scheduled airline, via an ownership structure tailored to EU rules that easyJet itself is questioning. It would also fit a wave of European aviation consolidation, with Air France-KLM moving to take majority control of SAS. For now, the ball is in Castlelake's court: raise the price enough to win the board's backing by July 5, or step back. ## Sources - [EasyJet rejects sweetened Castlelake offer, questions ownership](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-06-25/easyjet-rejects-sweetened-castlelake-offer-questions-ownership) - [EasyJet rejects fourth Castlelake bid but opens books and extends takeover deadline](https://www.proactiveinvestors.co.uk/companies/news/1094476/easyjet-rejects-fourth-castlelake-bid-but-opens-books-and-extends-takeover-deadline-1094476.html) - [EasyJet rejects Castlelake's 4th £6.50 a share proposal](https://www.rte.ie/news/business/2026/0625/1580235-easyjet-rejects-castlelake-offer-again/)