Prosus already holds stakes in food delivery operations in India, South America, and Southeast Asia.
Shares in Just Eat Takeaway.com were up by more than 50% in daily trading on Monday morning after tech investor Prosus announced it would buy the firm.
The all-cash deal, worth €4.1 billion in total, values shares at €20.30 each.
That’s higher than the price of around €19.15 per share seen on Monday morning, and a premium on Friday’s closing price of €12.43.
The acquisition follows a rocky period for Just Eat Takeaway, which delisted from the London Stock Exchange in December as part of a cost-cutting drive.
Shares still continue to trade in Amsterdam, where the company is headquartered.
Formed in 2020 from a merger between UK firm Just Eat and Dutch competitor Takeaway.com, the company benefitted from a lockdown boost in food deliveries.
In 2021, the firm acquired US delivery platform Grubhub, which it then sold last November for $650 million (€621m) – less than the $7.3bn (€7bn) it paid originally.
Following the Covid-19 pandemic, Just Eat Takeaway’s share price fell along with demand for deliveries.
While Prosus’ offer represents a premium on recent prices, it is less than a fifth of Just Eat Takeaway’s peak share value seen in 2020.
Just Eat has been a long-term target for Prosus, who bid against Takeaway.com for the business before the pandemic.
Expanding a European offering
The acquisition presents an opportunity for Prosus to expand its food delivery portfolio in Europe.
The technology investor, an arm of the Naspers group, already owns Brazilian firm iFood – and holds stakes in Delivery Hero and Swiggy.
Under the leadership of former CEO Fabricio Bloisi, who now leads Prosus, iFood became the biggest online food-delivery company in Brazil.
The firm has notably incorporated AI into operations to offer personalised order recommendations and streamline staff onboarding.
Also in its portfolio, Prosus holds a much smaller 4% stake in the Chinese food delivery business Meituan.
“Prosus already has an extensive food delivery portfolio outside of Europe and a proven track record of profitable growth through investment in our customer and driver experiences, restaurant partnerships, and world-class logistics, powered by innovation and AI,” Fabricio Bloisi said in a statement on Monday.
“We believe that combining Prosus’s strong technical and investment capabilities with Just Eat Takeaway.com’s leading brand position in key European markets will create significant value for our customers, drivers, partners, and shareholders,” he added.
Just Eat Takeaway operates in 17 markets including the UK, Germany, and the Netherlands, and is currently in fierce competition with groups like Uber Eats and Deliveroo.
The firm reported a net loss of €1.65bn for 2024 on Monday, including €1.16bn linked to its former asset Grubhub.
Jitse Groen, founder and CEO of Just Eat Takeaway, will continue to lead the business after the acquisition.
