DGAP-Adhoc: German Startups Group GmbH & Co. KGaA: German Startups Group exits its majority stake and realizes proceeds of two thirds of its market capitalization for it
DGAP-Ad-hoc: German Startups Group GmbH & Co. KGaA / Key word(s): Disposal +++ ad-hoc announcement +++ German Startups Group exits its majority stake and realizes
With the sale of Exozet, German Startups Group realizes surprisingly high capital gains in the amount of 6.1m euros or 0.54 euros per share. The management anticipates a record result for 2019 of the order of 3 to 5m euros or 0.27 to 0.44 euros per share and, therefore, an equity per 31 December 2019 of roughly 2.90 to 3.10 euros per share (IFRS consolidated). The balance sheet item cash and current financial assets alone may make up more than 1.00 euro per share. Exozet will be deconsolidated as of 17 December 2019.
More information is available on our website at www.german-startups.com. ABOUT ENDAVA: Endava is a leading next-generation technology services provider and helps accelerate disruption by delivering rapid evolution to enterprises. Using distributed enterprise agile at scale, Endava collaborates with its clients, seamlessly integrating with their teams, catalysing ideation and delivering robust solutions. Endava helps its clients become digital, experience-driven businesses by assisting them in their journey from idea generation to development and deployment of products, platforms and solutions. It services clients in the following industries: Payments and Financial Services, TMT, Consumer Products, Retail, Logistics and Healthcare. Information and Explanation of the Issuer to this News: As part of a structured bidding process directed by London-based Technology Holdings Worldwide German Startups Group was able to achieve a significantly higher price than earlier projected by itself. German Startups Group receives a fixed price in cash, whereas the executive Exozet shareholders, founders and employees, participating through a stock option program, also partly receive Endava shares and variable purchase price components that depend on the further business development of Exozet and their retention with Exozet. Exozet's buyer is Endava plc, a New York-listed next-generation technology provider headquartered in London with over 5,900 employees and numerous branches in various locations across Europe, North and South America. Endava plc emerged a winner from the bidding process because of its convincing concept, strong rapport with the management team and a competitive bid. In total, with the divestment of a handful of its stakes, German Startups Group has realized proceeds in 2019 amounting to more than its current market capitalization and, by that, greatly exceeded its ambitious objectives for the divestment of stakes it had set itself for this year. German Startups Group still holds, even after the sale of its majority holding, a broad portfolio of promising investments in young German tech growth companies, such as AuctionTech, Ceritech, Fiagon, Mister Spex, Remerge and Simplesurance. In 2020, the management focuses on divestments, again, and expects this to be successful in the intended cases through trade sales and exits, generating further, significant capital gains. Management does not plan re-investments of capital gains in shareholdings within the Venture Capital stage after it has taken note of the share price being penalized by the capital markets within the last three years due to the limited transparency of the financial data of its portfolio companies, leading to a significant discount on the Net Asset Value (NAV) per share. As long as the share price is significantly lower than the NAV per share in the eyes of the management, it wants to use sale proceeds for further share buybacks of its own shares, subject to approval of the supervisory board, and fully exercise the legally permitted volume for the use of own shares under exclusion of subscription right. In 2019 the company has already bought back more than 900.000 own shares or 7.7% of the its total shares outstanding as per end of 2018 which economically equals a high, tax-free dividend payout. Management considers the forecasted equity per share as per 31 December 2019 a good indicator for the NAV per share. German Startups Group's management looks very confidently to the new year.
17-Dec-2019 CET/CEST The DGAP Distribution Services include Regulatory Announcements, Financial/Corporate News and Press Releases. |
Language: | English |
Company: | German Startups Group GmbH & Co. KGaA |
Platz der Luftbrücke 4-6 | |
12101 Berlin | |
Germany | |
Phone: | +49 (0)30-54908603 |
Fax: | +49 (0)30-54908604 |
E-mail: | [email protected] |
Internet: | www.german-startups.com |
ISIN: | DE000A1MMEV4 |
WKN: | A1MMEV |
Indices: | Scale 30 |
Listed: | Regulated Unofficial Market in Berlin, Dusseldorf, Frankfurt (Scale), Hamburg, Tradegate Exchange |
EQS News ID: | 937887 |
End of Announcement | DGAP News Service |
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937887 17-Dec-2019 CET/CEST