Forest asset sale boosts Stora Enso's shares

Svenska Cellulosa Aktiebolaget SCA

22/05/2025 08:35

** Shares in Stora Enso STERV.HE jump around 4%, to their highest since March 21, after the Finnish forestry group on Wednesday said it was divesting 12.4% of its forest holdings in Sweden for 900 million euros ($1.02 billion)

** The divestiture is expected to reduce the group's adjusted EBITDA by about 25 million euros per year and to reduce net debt by 790 million euros, the company said

** Inderes believes the forest sale makes sense, as the "price level of the forest is now good and the sale will allow the company to reduce its debts with a relatively small loss of profit"

** "We believe that a sale at break-even value could support investor confidence in the break-even value of the remaining forest assets," Inderes analyst Antti Viljakainen says

** Swedish peer Svenska Cellulosa SCAb.ST is up around 3%, while its domestic peer UPM UPM.HE is up around 1%

($1 = 0.8830 euros)

 (Reporting by Elviira Luoma)

 ((Elviira.luoma@thomsonreuters.com))