UK water company Severn Trent has seen its share price fall after a takeover deal was abandoned.
A Canadian-led consortium had made several bids; the final valuing the company at £5.3bn (6.25bn euros; $8.3bn).
But Severn Trent rejected the LongRiver consortium's increased offer and the bid deadline has now passed.
Severn Trent's share price was down almost 8% in Wednesday morning trading following the breakdown of talks.
Under takeover rules, the consortium cannot now make another bid for Severn Trent for six months.
LongRiver said in a statement that it would not put forward a further bid for the water company after an "absence of meaningful engagement".
Severn Trent had said that the offer "continues to fail to reflect the significant long-term value of Severn Trent or to recognise its future potential".
The company has rejected previous offers made by the consortium of Canadian and UK pension funds on 3 June and 15 May.
"We have consistently made clear to the consortium our belief that Severn Trent has a value to our shareholders above the level it was willing to pay," said Severn Trent Chairman Andrew Duff.
"This difference in value has been at the heart of this process and the consortium has either not been able, or willing, to bridge that value gap," added Mr Duff.
Source: BBC News - Business http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-22870756#sa-ns_mchannel=rss&ns_source=PublicRSS20-sa
