UPDATE 1-Infineon shares soar on 250 mln euro wireless sale

Wed Jul 8, 2009 8:59am EDT
 
[-] Text [+]

* Company not planning to divest further divisions

* Shares rise as much as 13 percent (Adds CEO comments, background, updates shares)

By Nicola Leske and Christoph Steitz

FRANKFURT, July 8 (Reuters) - Shares in struggling German chipmaker Infineon Technologies AG (IFXGn.DE) soared on Wednesday after the company said it was selling its wireline communications unit (WLC) for 250 million euros ($349.5 million). [ID:nL745979]

The sale to a U.S. investor, announced late on Tuesday, provides Infineon with badly needed cash, boosting its refinancing efforts, but analysts said further measures are still needed to stabilise the company's position.

Infineon shares rose as much as 13 percent and were up 8.5 percent at 2.67 euros by 1239 GMT, one of the biggest gainers among German stocks .PG.DE, and outperforming the DJ Stoxx technology index .SX8P, which was down 0.3 percent.

The stock is a fraction of its 93.6 euros peak seen in 2000, shortly after its flotation.

"The deal looks attractive as it has a positive impact on (Infineon's) growth and margin profile," Commerzbank analyst Thomas Becker wrote in a note.

"The signalling effect of the disposal is clearly positive, however, given wireline's contribution of only 10 percent to group sales ... it does not trigger a revaluation," he added, keeping a "hold" rating on the stock.

Kepler analyst Tobias Loskamp said the deal was positive but kept a "reduce" rating on Infineon shares, arguing: "financing is not solve and the asset sale proves that there are limited options to raise cash elsewhere".

REFINANCING STILL ON

Infineon faces refinancing needs of around 770 million euros over the next year and has pledged to come up with a refinancing plan by the summer.

The group raised 180 million euros with a convertible bond issue in May and in June it slightly raised its outlook for fiscal third-quarter sales growth. [ID:nLP363154] [ID:nWEA3164]

Infineon Chief Executive Peter Bauer said on a conference call the sale of WLC did not mean the issue of refinancing was fully resolved. "The topic is not yet concluded," he said, adding the company would "consider all options" in its refinancing efforts.

He declined to comment on possible state aid or a future capital hike, but ruled out the divestment of other divisions.  Continued...

 

More News

Infineon shares soar on unit sale to U.S. investor
Wednesday, 8 Jul 2009 11:13am EDT 
European stocks fall for fifth day, hit 10-week low
Wednesday, 8 Jul 2009 07:02am EDT 
Europe stocks fall to 10-wk low; Alcoa eyed
Wednesday, 8 Jul 2009 04:53am EDT 

Featured Broker sponsored link