Accor Sees $1.65 Billion Share Buyback After Unit Stake Sale - Bloomberg

Accor Sees $1.65 Billion Share Buyback After Unit Stake Sale - Bloomberg:

"Accor SA plans to buy back as much as 1.35 billion euros ($1.65 billion) of shares over the next two years after the hotel operator agreed to sell a majority stake in its property business. Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, Singapore’s GIC Pte sovereign-wealth fund, Credit Agricole Assurances, Amundi SA, Colony NorthStar Inc. and other investors joined forces to purchase an initial 55 percent stake in AccorInvest, according to a statement Tuesday from the French company. Accor will receive 4.4 billion euros ($5.4 billion) in cash from the deal and plans to pursue regional acquisitions and the buyback. “Investors will now focus on the asset-light growth story of the group, which we view as one of the most interesting in the lodging space,” Raymond James analyst Simon Lechipre said in a note. Lechipre, who has an outperform rating on the stock, said the proceeds from the sale of the property-unit stake are slightly higher than expected."



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