Activist Elliott welcomes Sampo's Nordea Bank sell-off
11/11/2020 07:18
LONDON, Nov 11 (Reuters) - Elliott Capital Advisors
ECAL.UL has welcomed a decision by Sampo SAMPO.HE to sell
down its stake in Nordea NDAFI.HE , which it said could turn
the firm into a pure-play insurance champion and unlock 7
billion euros ($8.3 billion) in value.
In a statement on Wednesday, the activist said the move
would provide much needed focus and strategic clarity for Sampo
and alleviate investor uncertainty surrounding its strategy.
Elliott said Sampo's share price has suffered due to weak
share price performance of Nordea, and has in turn caused a
substantial de-rating of Sampo's insurance assets.
The Finnish insurer sold 4% of Nordea's share capital in an
accelerated bookbuild offering to institutional investors on
Tuesday.
The stake was sold at 7.25 euros per share, compared with
Nordea's closing price of 7.59 euros on Tuesday. Sampo remains
the biggest owner in Nordea with a 15.9% stake. urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL8N2HX1F9
($1 = 0.8455 euros)
(Reporting By Sinead Cruise, editing by Karin Strohecker)
((sinead.cruise@thomsonreuters.com; 020 7513 5026; Reuters
Messaging: sinead.cruise.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net))