'A key milestone', FDJ up after offer to buy Kindred
22/01/2024 09:48
** Shares in La Francaise des Jeux SA FDJ.PA rise about
4.5% after the gaming company launched a takeover bid of
European online peer Kindred Group KINDsdb.ST
** FDJ is offering 130 Swedish crowns ($12.43) a share for
Kindred, valuing it at an enterprise value of 2.6 billion euros
** The French gaming company says the deal is expected to
lead more than 10% accretion in dividend per share, starting
from 2025 and to be paid in 2026
** Stifel sees the potential deal as "a key milestone" for
FDJ's international expansion, saying it implies a gross gaming
revenue of 8 billion euros and EBITDA margin accretion by 2025
** "We view this step as positive given the scale it would
add to FDJ's online operations, particularly in a highly
competitive market, where building brands organically is
extremely challenging" - Stifel
** FDJ also announced results, posting FY revenue of 2.62
billion euros, beating IBES estimate of 2.59 billion
** FDJ's shares head for their best day since May 2022
** Kindred's KINDsdb.ST shares are up 15%
($1 = 0.9179 euros)
(Reporting by Olivier Sorgho)
((Olivier.Sorgho@thomsonreuters.com))