Sources: Kering Open To Selling Its Majority Stake In Puma

Sources said that Kering SA is "open to selling its majority stake" in Puma after "struggling for eight years to turn around the German sporting-goods maker." One source indicated that Kering, which owns Gucci, "views Puma as peripheral to its long-term strategy as its goal to complement its luxury brands with athletic labels hasn’t worked." A formal sale process "hasn’t started," and it "won’t until next year as Kering focuses on boosting Puma’s sales." This would be an "about-face" for Kering CEO Francois-Henri Pinault, who in February "pledged to fix the brand" (BLOOMBERG NEWS, 11/5).

Puma stock "rose to the highest in almost two years" following the report that Kering is open to selling. MainFirst analyst John Guy said that the the company could fetch up to US$4.4B, and he predicted "a disposal as soon as the second half" of '16 (BLOOMBERG NEWS, 11/6).