Exor has reached a final agreement on the sale of 15% of Sgs to Serena sarl (1.173.400 shares), a company wholly owned by Groupe Bruxelles Lambert (GBL). The company communicates it in a note. The price will be 2.128 Swiss francs per share, resulting in proceeds for the holding company that controls Fiat of two billion euros and a consolidated capital gain of approximately 1,53 billion. The shares correspond to the entire stake held by Exor in the company. The finalization of the sale agreement is expected by 10 June. At the opening of Piazza Affari, the shares of Exor gain about two percentage points, clearly leading the Ftse Mib.
“We are very satisfied with our investment in Sgs, which for us has constituted a model of company and management team with which we want to be associated – commented John Elkann, chairman and chief executive officer of Exor –. We have had the privilege of supporting its development over the past 13 years and are confident that the company will continue to grow and go from strength to strength. SGS will be able to continue to count on the constant commitment of the chairman Sergio Marchionne, the managing director Chris Kirk, the operations council and the support of the von Finck family and now of GBL, an investor for whom we have great respect. Gbl and its controlling shareholders, the Desmarais and Frère families, whom I know well personally, will be able to fully support Sgs in its next phase of development".
Exor has been a shareholder of Sgs for over 13 years, directly or through its other companies, and has been present with its own representatives on the company's board of directors. In 2000, when Exor began investing in the company, SGS reported revenues of 2,4 billion Swiss francs and an operating profit of 154 million Swiss francs. Since then, SGS has developed, strengthening its position as a world leader in the certification, verification and control sector, with revenues of 5,6 billion Swiss francs and an operating profit of 941 million.
In the same period, the capitalization of Sgs has grown by about four times. Exor, underlines the press release, "is proud to have supported you in recent years, during which the company has consolidated its competitive positioning, growing in value to the benefit of all its shareholders". The stake in SGS involved in the transaction represents approximately 19% of Exor's gross asset value. The sale "is part of the strategy of continuous evaluation and optimization of the portfolio and the proceeds will be used to seize new opportunities, in line with the investment strategy developed by Exor".
