Investors in Rathbones must be rubbing their hands with glee at the takeout multiple secured by Brewin Dolphin, its rival wealth management group. Royal Bank of Canada’s £1.6 billion offer last week represented a 62 per cent premium to the undisturbed share price, or roughly 23 times earnings forecast by analysts for next year, head and shoulders above an average multiple of 14 over the past decade.
For Rathbones, that meant an immediate 12 per cent rise in the FTSE 250 constituent’s share price and a steady re-rating ever since. But while the Brewin bid might have increased the likelihood of an offer emerging, that doesn’t mean it will be as generous.
Rathbones has been a long-time laggard of both Brewin and Brooks Macdonald,
