REA Group has seen its latest offer of £6.2bn for Rightmove rejected, leading to walk away from the deal.

The Australian firm, which is owned by Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp company, had made several offers to merge with the UK property portal.

REA said that it was looking to "unlock value" for both firms, adding that it would enhance customer and consumer value across the newly created combined portfolio.

However, Rightmove said that the latest proposal, which saw a 10 pence increase per share on the last offer, was "unattractive and continue to materially undervalue" the firm and its future prospects.

Chief executive officer at REA Group, Owen Wilson, said: "Against a backdrop of intensifying global competition, we approached Rightmove's Board because we strongly believed in the opportunity to create a globally diversified leader in the digital property sector that would benefit both REA and Rightmove shareholders. We were disappointed with the limited engagement from Rightmove that impeded our ability to make a firm offer within the timetable available. They had nothing to lose by engaging with us.

"We are always financially disciplined when we look at M&A and reinvestment in our business and will continue to focus on the many other opportunities ahead of us. We have a clear strategy to expand in our core business and adjacent markets, and India represents an exceptional opportunity for growth.”

The move comes after The Guardian reported that REA was valued at £12.8bn, which is more than News Corp, with the activist investor, Starboard Value, putting pressure on the firm to sell REA to realise its value.

Analysts have said that this decision to walk away has disappointed some investors, with Hargreaves Lansdown highlighting that shares in the firm were down by "around 8% by early afternoon".

However, they remain more than 20% higher than before the first bid was tabled, showing "renewed enthusiasm for the company’s prospects".

Head of money and markets at Hargreaves Lansdown, Susannah Streeter, added: "It’s easy to see why REA Group was interested in Rightmove. It runs property websites and indices across Australia, Asia and North America, so getting a dominant foothold in the UK would have been very attractive. Its interest is also likely to have been driven by the significant drop in Rightmove’s share price from the peak in December 2021.

"Sentiment around the property sector has been improving, with interest rate cuts eyed on the horizon and a house price revival in September. However, there are still risks ahead to the Rightmove model. The number of estate agents is falling, as DIY alternatives grow in popularity and more estate agents look set to be forced out of business. This could hamper the ability to cross-sell premium advertising packages. Right now though, today's estate agents can ill-afford not to advertise on Rightmove."

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