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Daimler sells remaining stake in EADS for €2.2bn Daimler sells remaining stake in EADS for €2.2bn
(5 months later)
German carmaker Daimler has sold its remaining stake in EADS, the owner of Airbus, for €2.2bn, ending more than a decade of involvement in the Franco-German industrial conglomerate.German carmaker Daimler has sold its remaining stake in EADS, the owner of Airbus, for €2.2bn, ending more than a decade of involvement in the Franco-German industrial conglomerate.
Daimler, whose products include Mercedes-Benz cars, has said it will use the proceeds from the sale of 7.5% stake to focus on its auto business and pay out dividends to shareholders.Daimler, whose products include Mercedes-Benz cars, has said it will use the proceeds from the sale of 7.5% stake to focus on its auto business and pay out dividends to shareholders.
"The proceeds from this sale are contributing positively to our free cash flow this year and in addition to the earnings from our ongoing businesses, will also support our policy of stable dividends," its financial director, Bodo Uebber, said in a statement."The proceeds from this sale are contributing positively to our free cash flow this year and in addition to the earnings from our ongoing businesses, will also support our policy of stable dividends," its financial director, Bodo Uebber, said in a statement.
Daimler was one of the prime movers in launching EADS in 2000, as European firms joined forces to create an aerospace giant to rival Boeing in the US. But the German carmaker has seen its core business outpaced by rivals, such as Volkswagen's Audi and BMW, leading it to reduce its original 30% stake in EADS.Daimler was one of the prime movers in launching EADS in 2000, as European firms joined forces to create an aerospace giant to rival Boeing in the US. But the German carmaker has seen its core business outpaced by rivals, such as Volkswagen's Audi and BMW, leading it to reduce its original 30% stake in EADS.
Last year a merger between EADS and the UK's aerospace firm BAE Systems was thwarted at the 11th hour, when the German chancellory vetoed the deal. The aftermath has seen Daimler and French media conglomerate Lagardere sell down their stakes in a streamlining of EADS's complex shareholding structure, which is designed to hold a balance of power between the French and German governments.Last year a merger between EADS and the UK's aerospace firm BAE Systems was thwarted at the 11th hour, when the German chancellory vetoed the deal. The aftermath has seen Daimler and French media conglomerate Lagardere sell down their stakes in a streamlining of EADS's complex shareholding structure, which is designed to hold a balance of power between the French and German governments.
"The EADS stake sale secures a stable dividend payment for 2013," Sascha Gommel, a Frankfurt-based analyst with Commerzbank, told Bloomberg news agency. "It's better for Daimler to invest the money in the company's core business or to spend it to the benefit of the shareholders in the form of a dividend payment.""The EADS stake sale secures a stable dividend payment for 2013," Sascha Gommel, a Frankfurt-based analyst with Commerzbank, told Bloomberg news agency. "It's better for Daimler to invest the money in the company's core business or to spend it to the benefit of the shareholders in the form of a dividend payment."
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