Hedge fund boss threatens Ocado coup

OCADO is facing a backlash from shareholders over its failure to secure a blockbuster expansion deal.

On Sunday the food delivery firm unveiled its first overseas tie-up with an unnamed regional European retailer.

The announcement initially sent shares soaring by 7pc in early trading yesterday.

But this was quickly followed by a sell-off as no further details emerged and fears grew it wasn’t the deal first hoped for. Then activist investor Crystal Amber unveiled a £9.4m stake in the online grocer, and led calls for the firm to secure a ‘national’ deal – as opposed to the regional one secured – amid claims of under-performance.

Shares finished down 1.2pc, or 3.8p to 312.2p. Under the terms of the deal Ocado has signed, the retailer – whose name remains a mystery – will use Ocado’s soft- ware but not its automated warehouse technology. Little is known about the European partner, beyond the fact that it is a regional retailer rather than a national seller – another blow to investors who feel the deal fails to go far enough.

Richard Bernstein, founder of Crystal Amber, said: ‘It’s a move in the right direction but it’s not the deal people were waiting for and it’s pretty scant on the details.’