Keith Miller takes his fight to keep company in hands of family to dissident shareholdersā adviser
The battle for control of Miller Group has moved up a gear with chief executive Keith Miller firing a broadside at Ernst & Young and insisting that almost a third of the rebel family shareholders do not want to sell their shares.
The rebel shareholders in the Aligned Shareholders Group (ASG) include James Miller, Keithās cousin and former Miller group chairman. It appointed Ernst & Young to assess the possibility of selling its 60% shareholding to an outside investor.
Keith Miller said: āErnst & Young have a lot to answer for. Itās encouraging unrealistic expectations. Shares in the housebuilding market are off 50% since May.ā
He said: āAll these shareholders are being advised collectively by Ernst & Young who are of course working for a fee. We would encourage each shareholder to take their own advice.ā
He added: āAt least 40% of shareholders do not want to sell. And thereās a good percentage of the ASG that donāt want to sell either. Because weāre a private company they donāt have to pay inheritance tax.ā
A spokesperson for the ASG dismissed Millerās claims. He said: āThe ASG is very united and all the shareholders have signed a power of attorney to the ASG.ā
He added: āItās noticeable that Keith Miller isnāt saying itās a bad time to sell if you sell to him.ā
Miller is understood to have offered to buy half the rebelsā shares, 30% of the company, for Ā£132m last month, a 20% premium on the companyās internal share price set in May.
The ASG believes it can obtain a higher price by selling its entire stake to an outside investor.
Last year the 75 rebel shareholders shared a dividend of more than Ā£7m, of which Ā£3m was paid to James Miller and his family, which has a 25% share holding.
Keith Miller and his family also hold 25% of Millerās shares. About 11% are held by employees.
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