STOCKS NEWS EUROPE-UK small caps lag blue-chip gains at midday

The FTSE Small Caps index is 0.2 percent higher, underperforming the blue-chip FTSE 100 index and the FTSE 250 mid-cap index , which gain 0.9-1.1 percent.

Shares in Sportingbet rise 1.9 percent to 52.42 pence as The Telegraph reports the online bookmaker is expected to receive a revised takeover offer from betting firm William Hill . [http://link.reuters.com/ryf92t ]

Sportingbet later said an indicative 52.5 pence offer from William Hill "significantly undervalued the business".

"We believe Sportingbet is worth more than 60 pence a share, excluding any bid speculation, and expect Wednesday's full-year results to show the business continues to make strong underlying progress," Panmure Gordon says in a note.

Shares in Renew Holdings fall 5.6 percent as the infrastructure engineering group flags exceptional restructuring costs and asset writedowns in its second-half trading statement.

Reuters messaging rm://francesco.canepa.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net

(Reporting By Francesco Canepa)

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