Morgan Stanley reduces its stake in Applus below 8%

2023-08-07 16:28:02

The investment bank Morgan Stanley has reduced its stake in the listed company Applus+ from 8.682% to 7.881%according to the documentation published in the National Securities Market Commission (CNMV).

So, Morgan Stanley controls a share package of more than 10 million of shares, with a market value that amounted to more than 95 million euros based on current market prices, since its shares are trading at 9.59 euros this Monday. Today they yield 0.10%, but so far this year they have appreciated 47.7% in the Continuous Market of the Spanish stock market.

The US entity is the main shareholder of the company dedicated to the inspection, certification and testing of industrial processes. Most of Morgan Stanley’s position, 7.754%, is through financial instruments such as options and futures. The second largest shareholder of the company is the US bank JP Morgan with 6.7% and the third is the German fund DWS with 5.86%.

This movement by Morgan Stanley occurs in full development of the Takeover bid (OPA) launched last June by the US fund Apollo for 100% of Applus+ for an amount of 1,226 million euros (9.5 euros per share in cash). This amount represents a premium of 2.3% compared to the price of the shares on those dates. The effectiveness of the offer will be subject, among other conditions, to a minimum acceptance of at least 96,805,600 Applus shares, representative of its 75% of the share capital with voting rights.

The CNMV agreed in July to admit Apollo’s takeover bid for Applus+ for processing, although this does not imply a pronouncement by the body “on the resolution regarding the authorization of the offer” or “any of its terms and conditions”.

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Since the announcement of the takeover bid on June 30, there have been various movements in the share capital of Applus+ by different funds and entities. Up to 21 investment funds have a position of more than 1% in the company’s capital.

Applus+ posted a net profit of 26.4 million euros in the first half of the year, a figure 21.4% higher than that of the same period in 2022, when its profits were 21.8 million euros, the company informed the company on Tuesday. National Stock Market Commission (CNMV). It is present in more than 65 countries on five continents and has a workforce of more than 25,000 employees.