Renault Group said it had sold 211,000,000 Nissan shares to the Japanese automaker and Alliance partner, or 5% of its capital.
As announced last month, the French group plans to reinvest at least 50% of the excess cash generated and will dedicate 15% to 20% of its free cash flow to financial investments.
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The EUR764m in cash from this operation will cover financial investments made by the group in 2023 as well as those planned for 2024.
This sale was implemented as part of the share buyback programme announced by Nissan on December 12, 2023, and executed next day. Nissan will cancel all the acquired shares on 15 December.
The group’s 31 December, 2023 annual results will show a disposal value of EUR764m but no impact on the operating margin and cash generation.
Capital loss on disposal, initially expected to be up to EUR1.5bn, will be reduced to around EUR1bn and there will be a disposal gain of around EUR100m.
After share cancellation tomorrow, Renault Group’s direct holding position will rise automatically to 15.79% of Nissan’s capital. 24.63% of Nissan shares will be held in the French trust of which Renault Group is the beneficiary.
In accordance with the New Alliance Agreement, Renault Group has no obligation to dispose of the 0.79% in excess of the 15%, and Nissan will continue to hold a 15% stake in Renault Group. However, the voting rights of Renault Group and Nissan will continue to be capped at 15%.
