BERLIN: Volkswagen shares are hovering around breakeven, reflecting a mixed response from investors to the automaker’s listing plans for sports car brand Porsche AG in what could be Europe’s third biggest initial public offering (IPO).
Volkswagen said on Sunday it was aiming for a valuation of between 70bil and 75bil (US$70 and US$75bil or RM318.7bil and RM341.4bil) for Porsche AG, slightly below some estimates of up to 85bil (RM388bil), but far outstripping the 49bil (RM223.7bil) price tag for rival BMW and Mercedes-Benz’s 61bil (RM278.5bil).
Porsche AG aims to win over investors with its track record of success and high margins, even as shares of other luxury carmakers like Ferrari and Aston Martin have suffered this year in the tumultuous European stock markets.
But the structure of the listing, in which Volkswagen’s largest shareholder, Porsche SE, will receive a blocking minority of 25% plus one of the voting ordinary shares, has sparked criticism from some fund managers.
The IPO will list 25% of preferred shares, which do not have voting rights, meaning stock market investors will own just 12.5% of Porsche AG’s capital and have little say.
Porsche SE, the holding company of Germany’s Porsche and Piech families, will pay a 7.5% premium for the shares it receives in the listing. But it will be treated as if it owns the stake even before that premium is transferred, according to the prospectus for the IPO released on Monday.
The prospectus listed risks facing the sports car brand, from unstable energy supply and supply chain shortages to difficulties in managing the relationship with Volkswagen and the dual role of Oliver Blume as chief executive officer of both companies.
Nonetheless, the listing has attracted cornerstone investors, including Qatar Investment Authority, which is buying 4.99% of the offering, Abu Dhabi’s ADQ, which is investing 350mil (RM1.6bil), as well as T Rowe Price and Norway’s sovereign wealth fund, investing 750mil (RM3.4bil) each.
“Our starting point is that we always want to be able to vote,” said Carine Smith Ihenacho, chief governance and compliance officer at the Norwegian fund.
“We do, however, own shares in a number of companies where shareholder rights are weaker than we would like. Voting rights are not the only way to exert influence though,” Smith Ihenacho added.
Uncertainties around the governance of the two companies could explain the lack of enthusiasm from markets, said Ingo Speich, head of sustainability and corporate governance at top-20 Volkswagen investor Deka Investment.
“If the splitting off of two companies improves the management quality and strategic direction of a business, that will be reflected in the valuation,” Speich said.
“It is fundamentally right that Porsche AG becomes more independent, but this is not an independent set-up.”
Oliver Blume will split his working capacity 50-50 between the two companies, according to the prospectus.
He will be paid entirely by Volkswagen until the end of the year and receive around 60% of his salary from the group after that, with the remaining 40% to be paid by Porsche AG, reflecting the different remuneration levels at the two firms. — Reuters
Analysts have compared Porsche AG stock to Ferrari, which has a market capitalisation of 38bil (RM173.5bil) but an operating margin of 24% compared to Porsche’s 17 to 18%.
The German carmaker is targeting a 20% margin and is far ahead in electric vehicles.
The prospectus said Porsche AG will pay a first dividend of 911mil (RM4.2bil) plus an extra dividend of 0.01 (RM0.05) per preferred share in 2022, in another nod to its famed 911 model.
Porsche AG’s capital is being split into 911 million shares for the listing.
“Investors are queuing up. If the Porsche IPO goes well, one could imagine placing other parts [of Volkswagen] such as Audi on the stock exchange,” auto expert Arndt Ellinghorst of data analytics firm QuantCo said.
The subscription period for private and institutional investors is expected to run until next Wednesday, with shares offered to private investors in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, France, Italy and Spain.
