US asset manager Capital Group has taken its stake in TDC past the 10% mark, making it the largest shareholder in the Danish incumbent.
Capital Group has been steadily building its interest in TDC, first crossing the 5% mark on 14 July.
It now owns…
US asset manager Capital Group has taken its stake in TDC past the 10% mark, making it the largest shareholder in the Danish incumbent.
Capital Group has been steadily building its interest in TDC, first crossing the 5% mark on 14 July.
It now owns more than 81 million shares in the operator, equating to DKr3.62bn (US$609m) based on TDC’s current share price DKr44.67 (US$7.52).
The telco’s two other large shareholders are Bank of New York Mellon and Massachusetts Financial Services, both of which disclosed they owned more than 5% of TDC in 2012.
Shareholders in TDC are required to disclose their stakes every 5% up to the 50% mark.
It is the first investor to have been above that threshold since private equity firm KKR sold its 11% stake in TDC in September 2013 via an accelerate bookbuild.
KKR was the last member of the NTC consortium of PE firms that once owned a majority of the telco, after buying an 87.9% stake in 2005 for US$15.3bn. The other firms in the NTC syndicate – Apax, Blackstone, Permira and Providence – gradually sold their shares between 2010 and 2013.
TDC could yet become a takeover target again if the long-mooted prospect of cross-Nordic consolidation comes to pass. In such a scenario, the telco would not have the muscle to outbid its larger rivals in the region, it is understood.
In its third-quarter earnings announced last week, it disclosed EBITDA of DKr2.51bn (US$422.2m), down from DKr2.59bn (US$435.7m) a year ago.
As the incumbent operator, TDC is too big to meaningfully participate in consolidation in Danish telecoms, although the operator would welcome a four-to-three merger between its smaller rivals which could aid market repair, according to a well-placed company source.
