FEMSA's Heineken divestment plan sets shares for best day in 2 years
16/02/2023 15:51
** Shares in Mexico's FEMSA FEMSAUBD.MX rise around 6% a
day after the bottler and retailer said it would divest its
stake in Dutch beer giant Heineken as it looks to pay off debt
and fund future growth
** In a strategic review published Wednesday, FEMSA said it
would divest its stake in the world's second-largest brewer
within 2-3 years, subject to market conditions, and its
appointed directors would resign from Heineken's boards
** The news has pushed up the firm's market value by 30.4
billion pesos ($1.63 billion) - putting it on track for its best
day since November 2020
** FEMSA has reported a 14.8% combined stake in Heineken
Holding HEIO.AS and Heineken N.V. HEIN.AS , in which the
Heineken family holds just over 50%
** Heineken on Thursday said it respected FEMSA's decision
and would evaluate its options, such as buying its shares from
the Mexican group
** "The company is clearly addressing the elephant in the
room," say analysts at Actinver Research, saying the market
should welcome the divestiture as investors were "concerned"
about the firm's growth story and complex corporate structure
** Based on Wednesday's close, Actinver says, the move
implies incoming resources worth some 143.74 billion pesos
($7.70 billion), around a quarter of its market cap, "leaving
the company with plenty firepower to reignite growth"
** "FEMSA will be building a powerful value-added financial
ecosystem," Monex analysts add, saying the new strategy should
bring more growth to FEMSA's Coca-Cola KOFUBL.MX and retail
business lines
($1 = 18.6590 Mexican pesos)
(Reporting by Sarah Morland)