The Australian fund IFM continues adding participation in Naturgy. This time, it gains positions in the capital until it reaches a 14.5% stake in the Spanish company, as indicated in the energy financial report for the first half of the year. Specifically, at the end of last June the fund had this position in the capital of the energy company, which at current market prices reaches a value of almost 3,830 million euros.
The last known position of IFM in the capital of Naturgy was the 14% that it has declared in the records of the National Securities Market Commission (CNMV). In this way, since then a package of slightly less than five million company titles has been obtained, which, at current market prices, would represent an investment of more than 130 million euros.
IFM launched a partial takeover bid for Naturgy in January 2021 with the aim of acquiring 22% of the company’s capital. The offer was in response to Criteria Caixa’s decision to strengthen its shareholding in the energy company, increasing its participation with various purchases in the market to the current 26.7% and with the aspiration of reaching up to 30%.
Finally, the acceptance of IFM’s partial takeover bid remained at 10.83% of Naturgy’s capital, below the minimum of 17% that was set as the target. Since then, the Australian fund has been carrying out share purchase operations to increase its weight, many of them taking advantage of the?dividend it had just received from Naturgy to invest in increasing its stake in the company, in addition to making use of its right to appoint a director.
Thus, in February 2022, Jaime Siles joined Naturgy’s governing body as representative of IFM, within the reorganization that the energy company undertook on its board of directors. With these successive movements in the capital of Naturgy, IFM is thus gradually climbing to its initial minimum objective of that 17% of the capital, which could open the doors to having the right to a second seat in the governing body of the company.
Since its interest in entering the capital of Naturgy, IFM has shown itself to be a long-term investor, willing to provide stability and support for the company’s management plans. Criteria, the holding company of La Caixa, continues to be the main shareholder of Naturgy, with 26.7% of the capital, followed by CVC (20.7%) and GIP (20.6%). The Algerian state-owned company is the group’s fifth shareholder with a 4.1% stake.
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Naturgy’s governing body is currently made up of twelve members -the company’s bylaws establish a minimum of 11 and a maximum of 15-, with its president Francisco Reynés as the only director with the category of executive, after two weeks ago the internal breach opened by the possible director of a delegate was settled, at least momentarily.
The rest of the members of the energy board are independent and proprietary, with representation from Criteria Caixa, which has three; CVC and GIP, with two each; and a representative of IFM.
