BlackRock Sells 7% Stake in Naturgy for $2 Billion Through Accelerated Bookbuild
BlackRock offloads €1.7B Naturgy stake while shares plunge 5% on discount.
Insights:
BlackRock(SY:BLK) has executed a strategic partial exit from Spanish gas utility Naturgy(SY:NTGY), selling a 7.1% stake for approximately 1.7 billion euros ($1.99 billion) through an accelerated bookbuild placement managed by JPMorgan(SY:JPM). The transaction, announced Thursday, represents one of the largest equity placements in European utilities this year and signals disciplined capital redeployment following the asset manager's 2024 acquisition of Global Infrastructure Partners.
The placement of 68,825,911 shares was executed at 24.75 euros per share, representing a 5.4% discount to Wednesday's closing price of 26.16 euros. The discount pricing, typical for accelerated bookbuilds that prioritize speed over optimal valuation, immediately pressured SY:NTGY shares, which fell 5% to 24.86 euros by 09:21 a.m. GMT, making them the worst performers on Spain(CO:ES)'s Ibex-35 blue-chip index.
