The Delivery Hero major shareholder Prosus wants to incorporate the Lieferando parent company Just Eat Takeaway in a billion-euro deal. The Dutch internet investment holding wants to put 20.30 euros per share in cash on the table, as the subsidiary of the Cape Town-based Naspers group announced in Amsterdam on Monday. This corresponds to a premium of 49 percent on the volume-weighted average price of the past three months. Overall, the acquisition would cost Prosus 4.1 billion euros. The management and supervisory board of Just Eat Takeaway support the deal.
The stock of Just Eat Takeaway jumped up to 55 percent pre-market to 19.25 euros. This also boosted the pre-market price of the competitor Delivery Hero, which rose up to six percent on the Tradegate trading platform.
For some time now, there has been speculation in the industry about a consolidation of the various food delivery services. The focus has been on Delivery Hero and Just Eat Takeaway, which have been competing for customers in a number of countries. In addition to the MDax company, Prosus also has the delivery service iFood from Brazil in its portfolio. According to its own information, Prosus holds 28 percent of Delivery Hero.
Figures of the Lieferando parent company Just Eat Takeaway
Meanwhile, the Lieferando parent company Just Eat Takeaway announced its figures for the completed year early. Based on preliminary findings, the Gross Transaction Value (GTV) fell by two percent to 26.3 billion euros. Revenue declined by one percent to just over 5.1 billion euros. The board of directors, led by Just Eat Takeaway CEO Jitse Groen, explained the development by saying that fewer orders were placed and that "market conditions" in North America, as well as Southern Europe and Australia, were less favorable.
In contrast, the adjusted result before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) increased by around 120 million to now 460 million euros. The company earned in its more profitable regions, the United Kingdom and Ireland. However, the Dutch group is still writing losses: After just over 1.8 billion euros in the previous year, the deficit in 2024 was 1.6 billion euros. According to the company, this was mainly due to non-cash impairments of around one billion euros in connection with the sale of the struggling North America business Grubhub.
The tailwind for operating profit is not expected to continue: For 2025, management is already forecasting a decline to 360 to 380 million euros. This is due to the sale of Grubhub, Groen explained in a conference call with journalists. Without currency effects, the gross transaction value for the current year is expected to increase by four to eight percent – in 2024 the increase was two percent.
Already in mid-February, JPMorgan analyst Marcus Diebel identified signs that consolidation in the food delivery industry might occur. In his view, Prosus should take on the role of a "kingmaker" in this process. Accordingly, Delivery Hero's Latin American business could be merged with the activities of the iFood subsidiary in Brazil. Within Europe, there is potential for synergies between Just Eat Takeaway and Delivery Hero, where both claim to compete for customers in Austria, Poland, Italy, and Spain.
Diebel assumes that there could be more consolidations worldwide. In Southeast Asia, for instance, the major player Grab Holdings from Singapore is reportedly looking to acquire the smaller Indonesian competitor GoTo.
The industry is in upheaval after investors demanded a path to profitability in recent years. Growth has since been a secondary priority – Just Eat Takeaway and Delivery Hero are now focused on achieving profits in their operating business.
