Ancora Holdings Group has built a stake of more than 4% in UK-listed Big Yellow Group Plc and is pushing the self-storage company to explore a sale, according to a presentation reviewed by Bloomberg News. Ancora argues that Big Yellow has a resilient business model but has been materially undervalued in the public market, trading at a 40% discount to its net asset value.
The investor believes Big Yellow can deliver value to shareholders by launching a comprehensive strategic review, including a sale process, and soliciting interest from potential strategic and financial buyers. James Chadwick, president of Ancora Alternatives, plans to unveil its position and campaign as soon as Tuesday at the Sohn San Francisco Investment Conference.
A representative for Big Yellow didn't immediately respond to a request for comment. Ancora noted that Big Yellow, based in Surrey, UK, is the largest self-storage company in the country, with locations in London and the Southeast. In May, it reported annual revenue of £209.1 million for 2026, which increased 2% over the prior year and was the highest in five years.
Ancora named potential bidders including Heitman, Nuveen, KKR & Co. Inc., Public Storage, and Extra Space Storage Inc. The campaign marks one of Ancora's first forays into the UK market. Cleveland, Ohio-based Ancora, with $12 billion in assets under management, has run more than 30 campaigns in the last six years.
Source: Bloomberg Markets · Summarized by HeadlinesBriefing