Shares in private equity giant KKR & Co (KKR) were higher today after it secured an agreed $6.46 billion takeover offer for U.K. scientific instruments maker Spectris.
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Accelerate Growth
The offer exceeds the $6.03 billion rival offer for Spectris from private equity firm Advent. As such, the Spectris board said it had withdrawn its previous support for that Advent offer.
The KKR offer represents a 96.3% premium to the closing price of £20.38 per Spectris share on June 6, 2025, the last day of trading before the offer period commenced.
Spectris has two main divisions. Scientific manufactures advanced material measurement technology for markets such as pharmaceuticals and semiconductors. Dynamics makes advanced integrated virtual and physical testing, and high precision sensing solutions for sectors ranging from aerospace to automotive and electronics.
KKR believes that Spectris has a number of opportunities to accelerate its growth in “attractive end markets which it has not been able to execute as a listed company.”
Advent’s Right
Advent, however, may return with a better bid. It has reserved the right to increase its offer for Spectris if a competing bid is made.
“The ball is now back in Advent’s court, and having stalked Spectris for an extended period, there must be some chance that it keeps fighting,” analysts at Stifel said. “But having already raised its bid several times, room for maneuvering looks fairly limited to us.”
The deal is another example of how attractive listed U.K. firms are to U.S. private equity and trade buyers. Another recent example was Qualcomm’s (QCOM) $2.4 billion acquisition of the U.K. tech group Alphawave IP.
This is down to their cheaper valuations and the U.K.’s relative economic and market stability.
Is KKR a Good Stock to Buy Now?
On TipRanks, KKR has a Strong Buy consensus based on 13 Buy ratings. Its highest price target is $189. KKR stock’s consensus price target is $143.08 implying a 8.03% upside.
