Fate of M and S could be decided today

The fate of Marks & Spencer could be decided today as the retailer prepared for a crunch meeting with its institutional and private investors.

Shareholders are expected to make up their minds on whether to support a proposed £9.1bn (€13.6bn) takeover offer from tycoon Philip Green following the annual meeting of the company in London.

M&S chief executive Stuart Rose is seeking support for the decision to reject Mr Green’s proposal of 400p a share on the grounds that it is too low.

On Monday, he outlined a raft of measures to increase value for shareholders including a £2.3bn (€3.4bn) windfall payment and the sale of financial services arm M&S Money for £762m (€1.1bn).

The annual meeting will take place against a background of intense lobbying of shareholders by both M&S and Mr Green in recent days.

M&S last night won the support of Standard Life Investments (SLI), which has a 2% stake in M&S, for its blueprint of the future.

But other investors were taking a more cautious approach and opting to wait until after the annual meeting to make a final decision on the takeover proposal.

Bhs and Arcadia owner Mr Green has already secured the support of investment bank Schroders and US-based Brandes, which has an 11.7% stake in M&S.

He is urging the remaining shareholders to put pressure on the M&S board because he needs at least a week to complete due diligence.

Issues relating to the M&S pension fund could also come under scrutiny after the trustees revealed a bidder could have to make future cash injections totalling £785m (€1.1bn) a year.

Mr Green has offered to meet the trustees “at their earliest convenience” after being denied a meeting last week.