Estate agent ‘is takeover target’

Countrywide, the owner of estate agent chains Hamptons and Bairstow Eves, is being sized up for a bid by a mystery suitor, according to a Mail on Sunday report.

The company floated on a valuation of £750m six years ago but has slumped to a market capitalisation of only £77m amid a tough property market.

Countrywide was previously owned by the private equity giant Apollo before falling into the hands of its lenders in the wake of the credit crunch. The company, led by executive chairman Peter Long, made no comment.