German company Delivery Hero confirms takeover offer from rival Uber

Shares in Delivery Hero surged on Monday after the company confirmed takeover interest from US ride-hailing and food delivery giant Uber, fuelling speculation of a potential bidding war.

The Berlin-based food-delivery service, which is listed on Germany’s MDAX index, said Uber had approached it with an offer of €33 ($38) per share for a full takeover. The proposed price was below Delivery Hero's closing share price on Friday.

The stock jumped as much as 9% to €36.69 on Monday, giving the company a market value of just over €11 billion ($12.8 billion). Uber is already a significant shareholder in Delivery Hero.

Analyst Giles Thorne of US investment bank Jefferies said the €33-per-share proposal appeared insufficient, noting that some investors were seeking more than €40 per share.

How things proceed from here "is difficult to predict," he wrote.

The Financial Times had earlier reported, citing informed sources, that Uber rival DoorDash had also approached Delivery Hero shareholders.

DoorDash is reportedly primarily interested in Delivery Hero's Middle Eastern brands Talabat and HungerStation, as well as the Turkish business Yemeksepeti.

For Uber, the deal would make strategic sense in terms of both geographic expansion and potential synergies, JPMorgan analyst Marcus Diebel wrote, although he also pointed to likely regulatory hurdles.

Delivery Hero shares had rallied sharply in recent days amid speculation over a possible offer from Uber.

Although headquartered in Berlin, Delivery Hero no longer operates in Germany following the sale of its domestic business to Just Eat Takeaway. The company remains one of the world's largest food delivery providers due to its strong presence in Asia, Southern Europe, the Arabian Peninsula and Africa.

Uber operates its own food delivery service, Uber Eats, including in many German cities.

Last week, Delivery Hero said Uber now held 19.5% of its issued share capital, up from around 7%.