The Sydney-listed toll road operator said IFM's $5.3bn offer was hostile, highly conditional and too low, with chair Debbie Goodin saying it materially undervalued the company.
Goodin said the proposal was opportunistic and designed to accelerate IFM's creep, referring to the investor's strategy of gradually increasing its stake.
The rejection rebuffs an approach from Atlas Arteria's biggest shareholder and leaves the future of any revised bid or further stake-building in focus.
Is IFM’s bid a lowball offer, or the only way to unlock the true value of critical global toll roads?
As pension funds hunt for infrastructure, what does this hostile takeover signal for the future control of public assets?