Bestway Group ‘not considering’ bid for Sainsbury’s despite snapping up major stake in supermarket giant

Bestway Group has expanded its investment empire to British supermarkets, snapping up a stake in Sainsbury’s.

In a statement, the company revealed it has bought over 80m shares in the Big Four supermarket chain, representing 3.45 per cent of Sainsbury’s share capital.

Bestway has confirmed it is not considering an offer for Sainsbury’s, but it could may further market purchases of the supermarket’s shares “from time to time, subject to availability and price.”

The business group intends to hold its shares for investment purposes, and “looks forward to supporting the executive management team.”

Sainsbury’s confirmed it was aware of the acquisition of shares, and noted that Bestway was not considering a takeover deal for the company.

The FTSE 100 company revealed it will engage with Bestway “in line with our normal interactions with shareholders.”

Bestway is the seventh largest family-owned business in the UK with turnover of approximately £4.5bn.

Starting off as a chain of convenience stores in 1963, Bestway is now a diversified multinational business with interests across the wholesale, pharmacy, real estate, cement and banking sectors.

Today, it serves over 12m customers and employs over 28,000 individuals across the UK, Pakistan and the Middle East.

Sainsbury’s recently announced it is investing £185m in pay bumps for staff as the supermarket looks to retain its workforce during a period of high inflation and rising cost of living.

It also posted a robust third-quarter update earlier this month, cashing in on Christmas shopping with retail sales up more than five per cent.

In the third quarter – retail sales were up more than five per cent, while grocery revenues increased by 5.6 per cent, which is 12.5 per cent up on pre-pandemic levels. 

The supermarket giant now expects its profit to be at the “upper end” of guidance for the full-year – forecasting pre-tax profits of close to £700m in March.