Takeover talk overclocks Codemasters shares

AIM-listed games developer Codemasters (LON:CDM) saw its share price soar 22.66% to 655p (as of 15:55 GMT) following a recommended cash offer of 604p by a subsidiary of EA. The board has withdrawn its recommendation regarding the prior offer from Take-Two Interactive who have said that they are considering their position.

Codemasters chairman Gerhard Florin commented: “Electronic Arts and Codemasters have a shared ambition to lead the video game racing category. The Board of Codemasters firmly believes the company would benefit from EA’s knowledge, resources and extensive global scale – both overall and specifically within the racing sector. We feel this union would provide an exciting and prosperous future for Codemasters, allowing our teams to create, launch and service bigger and better games to an extremely passionate audience.“