British retailer GUS PLC turned down a $12.3 billion offer for its Costa Mesa-based Experian Group unit, according to a report last week.
The report in the Daily Telegraph said U.S.-based private equity firms made an initial bid for Experian, one of the three major credit scoring agencies.
The bidders included Thomas H. Lee Partners LP and Bain Capital LLC, both of Boston.
They are said to be considering a second offer for Experian.
GUS said last year that it planned to spin off Experian, but did not give a specific timeline or lay out exactly how it planned to do it. Some have said the company might sell its stake in an initial public offering.
In the past, some analysts had put the value of a separately traded Experian at around $10 billion.
Higher Bid
Analysts with ING Securities said the bid would have to be $14.1 billion to $15.8 billion for GUS to reconsider, according to a Bloomberg article.
That would put Experian in the top tier of OC’s most valuable companies, along with Irvine chipmaker Broadcom Corp. at $25 billion in recent market value and Irvine drug maker Allergan Inc. at about $16 billion.
Thomas H. Lee and Bain Capital owned Experian until 1996 when GUS bought it.
Following word of the failed bid, investors lined up for GUS’ stock, bidding up shares about 4% on the news.
,Brian Womack
