Guoco: Buying in until a Bottom Is Reached?

13 October 2008

By Christopher A. Krafcik

Guoco Group Ltd., the investment arm of Hong Leong Group Malaysia, has once again upped its shareholding in Rank Group, the troubled land-based and online gambling operator, to 23.19 percent.

Guoco now controls 90.5 million of Rank's ordinary shares, which, Monday, were trading at 55.5 pence -- just 3.5 pence off their 52-week low.

"The feeling in the City is that they will make a bid at some point," Simon J. Holliday, the director of H2 Gambling Capital, told IGamingNews by e-mail today.

"They (Guoco) are required to bid at just 30%, I believe," he added. "My guess is they are trying to gradually buy in until a bottom is reached. The focus has been on the bingo story -- but my feeling is that their casino is not performing that well."

Rank Group, with a market capitalization of £216.7 million, has remained a steady subject of takeover speculation since its September 2007 profits warning.

Guoco is Rank's largest shareholder.

Guoco: Buying in until a Bottom Is Reached? is republished from iGamingNews.com.