STOBART GROUP’S £120m share offer to fund a restructuring and expansion strategy has received a lukewarm response from shareholders.

Just 25.5% of the 76m shares have been taken up by qualifying shareholders, although the remaining will be taken up by investors, it announced to the stock market this morning.

The move requires approval at Stobart’s general meeting tomorrow with the shares expected to begin trading on Thursday.

The logistics group, which employs about 1,000 staff in Warrington and Widnes, has faced a rare period of difficulty in the last quarter.

Its share price has fallen more than 20% since early February while last week it was forced to make a robust denial of national newspaper reports that it was under investigation by the Financial Services Authority.

The allegations centred around plans to buy back a property portfolio from two senior executives – chief executive Andrew Tinkler and chief operating officer William Stobart – which the pair acquired from the company four years ago.

The purchase formed part of the group’s restructuring which will see the creation of a corporate structure of five separate divisions.

The board will also use about £20m to buy the 50% of the biomass fuels business it currently does not own, while up to £25m will be invested in the group’s two airport developments at Southend and Carlisle.