Wed 17th Jul 2019 - Stonegate owner weighs up takeover of Ei Group Stonegate owner weighs up takeover of Ei Group: TDR Capital, the private equity firm that owns Stonegate Pub Company, is considering an acquisition of Ei Group, reports Bloomberg. A deal could be announced as soon as this week, according to sources, who asked not to be identified because the deliberations are private. No final decisions have been made and the discussions may not lead to a transaction, they said. Ei Group, which owns more than 4,400 pubs, has a market value of about £902m. The company’s shares were little changed Wednesday, closing at 205.80p. The stock is up about 32% in the past year. Ei Group leases, owns and manages pubs and has property assets valued at about £3.6bn, according to its website. The company had net debt of £2bn at the end of 2018, according to its annual report. TDR established Stonegate in 2010 to buy 333 pubs from Mitchells & Butlers and has since more than doubled its size through acquisitions, according to its website. Stonegate brands include the Slug and Lettuce, Yates and Walkabout chains. In 2018, Stonegate failed with a £101.5m bid to buy Revolution Bars Group, which is listed on the stock market. The deal could be the second take-private for TDR in a month. London-based TDR agreed to buy online used-car seller BCA Marketplace for £1.9bn in June. Private equity firms are scoping out opportunities to buy out publicly held companies in the country after concerns about Brexit led to a slow start to the year. A representative for TDR declined to comment while Ei Group didn’t immediately respond to requests.