Shares in Australia's Billabong fell as much as 30 percent on Wednesday after the struggling surfwear maker said it was in talks over a takeover proposal valuing it at around $300 million, 45 percent lower than indicative offers.
Former Billabong U.S. head Paul Naude and private equity firm Sycamore Partners had made a conditional A$0.60 per share offer, Billabong said in statement on Tuesday.
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Its earlier proposal was at A$1.10 and had been matched by a rival bid from a consortium comprised of private equity firm Altamont Capital Partners and U.S. clothing group VF Corp.
The Sycamore consortium would have an exclusive 10 day period to conduct further due diligence and had secured the agreement of founder and top shareholder Gordon Merchant for the deal, Billabong said.
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Billabong shares, on a trading halt since last week, fell to an all-time low of A$0.51 and last traded down 29 percent at A$0.515.