Qatar’s sovereign wealth fund plans to sell a stake worth about £273 million ($360 million) in J Sainsbury Plc, marking a significant selldown by the supermarket’s largest shareholder.
The Qatar Investment Authority plans to sell up to 83.6 million shares in the supermarket, according to a statement on Tuesday. It has also entered into a derivatives agreement with JPMorgan, as a result of which, the bank will sell a further 14 million shares. The value of the stake sale is based on Monday’s closing price of £3.26 a share.
The share sale comes after a 19% rally in Sainsbury’s shares this year, driven by higher sales as a result of British shoppers’ focus on value for money.
Qatar currently holds 239.4 mllion shares in the supermarket chain, representing a 10.5% stake, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
Once the deal closes, Qatar will no longer be Sainsbury’s largest shareholder, dropping below Czech billionaire Daniel Křetínský’s investment vehicle Vesa Equity Investment, based on the proposed sale plan.
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