Manitowoc shares rise on Illinois Tool plans to buy Enodis

NEW YORK—Shares of Manitowoc Inc. rose Thursday on news that Enodis PLC accepted a $2 billion acquisition bid from Illinois Tool Works Inc., trumping Manitowoc's earlier offer.

Manitowoc shares rose $1.89, or 4.9 percent, to $40.30, after peaking at $40.56 earlier in the day. Over the past 52 weeks, the company's shares have traded between $30.07 and $51.49.

The London-based food-service provider on Thursday accepted Illinois Tool's all-cash offer after previously accepting Manitowoc's bid of $1.9 billion.

Manitowoc said Thursday it was considering its position and would make an announcement later.

Deutsche Bank's Nigel Coe said a deal with Illinois Tool probably would have an easier time gaining regulatory approval than one involving Manitowoc, because Illinois Tool has a smaller footprint and less product overlap with Enodis.

"This is in sharp contrast with the proposed Manitowoc/Enodis combined entity which would/will face significant anti-trust issues related to its combined Ice market share that could lead/have led to disposals," Coe wrote in a note to investors.

But the analyst noted that Manitowoc has pursued Enodis for at least two years and may not give up so easily.

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