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Sir Ken Morrison and family

The City cheered an upbeat Christmas trading statement from Wm Morrison but the grocer, based in Bradford, is looking to a £1 billion stores sell-off to defend itself against takeover threats. It also plans to ditch its yellow-and-black logo. Long-standing chairman Morrison, 75, who intends to bow out next year, expanded the group with a £3.24 billion takeover of Safeway. The difficulties of that integration appear to be in the past and, in the first half of 2006, like-for-like sales rose 6.6%. Shares last month reached their highest level since the Safeway bid days, valuing Wm Morrison at £8.2 billion and making the family stake worth £1.495 billion. Other assets add £100m.