Cash-flush Rocket Internet lifted by $175 mln buyback plan (updated)

home24 SE

20/09/2018 08:33

* Rocket has 2.1 billion euros in cash
    * Share price up after it listed several start-ups
    * Stock still below price it listed at in 2014
    * CEO sees opportunities for major investments

 (Adds details, CEO comments)
    By Emma Thomasson
    BERLIN, Sept 20 (Reuters) - German ecommerce company Rocket
Internet  RKET.DE  responded to investor calls to use some of
its 2.1 billion euro cash pile on Thursday with a plan to buy
back shares worth up to 150 million euros ($175 million), 3.6
percent of its outstanding stock.
    Shares in Rocket, which had a shaky start after listing in
2014 but have risen by more than a third this year after the
IPOs of start-ups Delivery Hero  DHER.DE , HelloFresh  HFGG.DE 
and Home24  H24.DE , were up by 3.3 percent at 0716 GMT.
    Rocket's online furniture retailer Westwing also announced
plans for a listing in Frankfurt last week. urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL5N1VZ12I
    However at around 28 euros, Rocket shares are still well
under the 42.5 euros price when it listed, putting pressure on
Chief Executive Oliver Samwer, who wants to be ready to invest
in new companies, to return some cash to shareholders.
    "We are looking at a number of opportunities where we
potentially will deploy several dozens or several hundreds of
millions," Samwer told journalists on Thursday.
    Sectors of interest include in fintech, software, artificial
intelligence and online market places, Samwer added.
    Samwer reiterated that Rocket's loss-making African
ecommerce group Jumia, also a possible candidate for a listing,
would seek to raise capital over the next 24 months.
    Rocket said Jumia saw gross merchandise volume - the value
of goods sold via the site - rise 62 percent to 163 million
euros in the second quarter, a slight deceleration from the 71
percent growth it saw in the first quarter.
    Rocket's other major holdings - Delivery Hero, HelloFresh,
Home24, Westwing and Global Fashion Group (GFG) - had already
reported quarterly figures.
($1 = 0.8559 euros)

 (Reporting by Emma Thomasson
Editing by Alexander Smith)
 ((+49 30 2888 5081; Reuters Messaging:
emma.thomasson.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net))