ZURICH (Reuters) – Holcim shares were indicated to open significantly higher in premarket activity on the Swiss stock exchange on Monday after the building materials giant unveiled plans to separate and list its North American business.
The company’s shares were indicated 7.09% higher according to premarket information from Julius Baer.
Holcim on Sunday said it will spin off 100% of its North American operations in a New York flotation which could value the business at $30 billion.
The plan is to give shares to shareholders in a spin-off. The company also named Miljan Gutovic, the head of its Europe region, as its new chief executive.
Bank Vontobel analyst Mark Diethelm said shareholders were expected to view the transaction positively “given that the multiples paid in the US for such companies are higher than in Europe”.
“The decision does make sense as a pure North American operation likely will attract more business with a local management and local board,” he added.
Zuercher Kantonalbank was also positive on the plan, saying it would make the true valuation of the overall business more visible.
“We see the planned transaction and the succession solution for the CEO as clearly positive for the investment case,” said analyst Martin Hueseler.
(Reporting by John Revill, Editing by Rachel More)
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