Inmarsat: takeover talk - FT.com Sadly, there is still plenty of action in Afghanistan. But for investors in Inmarsat - the UK satellite company that provides phones and internet services to ships, aircraft and soldiers in such remote places - some action in the boardroom would be welcome. Over the past year, the company's share price has fallen by two-fifths as a stalled shipping industry and cutbacks in military activity hurt business. Is this a perfect moment to make a bid? Inmarsat's shares jumped 4 per cent on Wednesday on speculation that it may be a takeover target. EADS and General Electric have been aired as possible candidates. The Franco-German aerospace group bought Vizada, one of Inmarsat's main distributors, last year for €1bn; adding Inmarsat may open up some prospect of synergies. Cost savings are less obvious for GE, though. That said, Inmarsat's tepid medium-term outlook could be a turn-off for a publicly listed acquirer. Its earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation in 2012 are forecast to fall by 4 per cent, and there is little prospect of growth in 2013. That perhaps opens the door for private equity. In a leveraged buy-out scenario, if a buyer paid, say, £2.5bn - or £5.54 per share, a 30 per cent premium to Inmarsat's undisturbed share price - funded half with debt, then even assuming no ebitda growth over five years, it could produce an internal rate of return of 12 per cent. Not bad. Boosting Inmarsat's appeal is that its long-term future looks favourable. It has yet to materially tap into emerging markets, and its new global broadband satellites could boost its military business revenues late next year. Current investors may be fed up with the lack of action, but a private buyer with a longer-term perspective should be able to find value in the business. For Inmarsat's long-suffering shareholders, that would be a relief.