Investor wants to take Metro off the stock exchange

With the metro share, a former DAX value may soon be saying goodbye to the stock exchange.

The Czech investor Daniel Kretinsky plans the withdrawal from the floor and wants to shape all metro shareholders: submit a delisting offer inside. The company surprisingly announced this on Wednesday evening. The stem share increased by almost 40 percent on Thursday morning and rose to the highest level for almost a year.

The years, which the Düsseldorfers also announced on Wednesday, are a little bit into the background in view of this news. With the increase to 5.36 euros, the course is a little above the offer that Kretinsky wants to do with investors. For those in the SDAX a long time ago He wants to offer departure shares 5.33 euros just like the preferred shares listed on the stock exchange. The company will be rated with almost two billion euros.

So far, Kretinsky has held 49.99 percent of the metro shares. The Metro board supported the delisting, it said in the message. He wants to check the offer and then make a statement. The offer offered a “significant premium” on the current and the stock market course weighted over the past few months, but the bodies have already announced. At the same time, however, the prize does not fully reflect the long -term growth potential of Metro in the opinion of the board and the supervisory board.

The approval by the Federal Financial Service Supervisory Authority (BAFIN) is expected to be published in March. Then the acceptance period for the delisting offer should also begin. The plan also provides that the management bodies remain in office. For a period of 18 months, a domination agreement by the Investor-Vehikel from Kretinsky is also to be dispensed with.

The other two major shareholders: inside, meridian and Beisheim, they do not want to cede their shares. Together they hold a total of 24.99 percent of the share capital and the voting rights associated with the metro shares. On Wednesday evening, Metro also submitted figures for the first business quarter that are less important under these circumstances. Analyst Volker Bosse from Baader Bank spoke of good sales development, but a weaker growth in results.

In the three months of October to December, sales increased by 5.6 percent to EUR 8.6 billion in the year. Without exchange rate effects as well as access and sales of company parts, the proceeds in the Christmas quarter climbed by 7.1 percent. That was a stronger plus than in the same period last year and also than in the previous quarter. All segments and sales channels had contributed to the growth, it said from the SDAX Group. The result adjusted by special items before interest, taxes and depreciation increased from 407 to 412 million euros.

“Our goal is to continue this dynamic over the course of the year and at the same time to pay more attention to productivity and profitability,” said metro boss Steffen Greubel. The manager confirmed the forecast for the 2024/25 financial year. Metro wants to increase sales by 3 to 7 percent on its own. The adjusted operational result should easily increase.

Before the surprising offer, the stock had only known one direction – which down. The course had only fallen to the record low of 3.75 euros in the beginning of the week. Since splitting the former metro group into the wholesale chain of the same name and the electronics retailer Ceconomy In the summer of 2017, the stock market value from Metro Despite the course jump on Thursday by 70 percent.

Due to the drop in the course, the metro shares were from the MDAX in spring 2021 descended into the SDAX. Until 2012 the share – at that time the Kaufhof department store chain was part of the group – even in the German leading index Dax listed. At the end of the last millennium – in the first years after the merger of Kaufhof and Metro Cash & Carry, Metro was worth more than 20 billion euros. Ceconomy is currently coming and Metro together only at around 3.6 billion euros.