Applus confirms "shows of interest" from investors to acquire the company

MADRID, 5 May. (EUROPA PRESS) -

Applus has confirmed this Friday in a statement sent to the National Securities Market Commission (CNMV) that it has received "non-binding and unsolicited samples of interest" from certain investors, for the acquisition of the company.

The group has explained that access to a review of information has been requested, which has been granted, and that for now "there is no type of decision on the part of any of said investors or certainty that said entities are going to carry out any additional action ".

Applus shares soared 13.83% yesterday on the stock market due to the possible interest of various venture capital funds in acquiring the company for a sum that would exceed 1,000 million euros.

Specifically, Reuters advanced this Thursday that entities such as Apollo, Apax and a consortium formed by I Squared and TDR were probing the operation.

Applus shares started yesterday's session with slight falls, but the possible interest in acquiring the company caused them to soar up to 15% in the last minutes of the day and led the rises on the Spanish stock market.

The 8.64 euros per share with which the company closed yesterday place the group's capitalization above 1,000 million euros, a figure that was considered as the one that the aforementioned investment funds interested in the purchase of Applus could offer. .

Since the start of the war in Ukraine and the rise in interest rates, Applus has appeared in most analyst pools as a candidate to receive a takeover bid (OPA) that would exclude it from the stock market.

However, Applus is experiencing a good year on the floor, regardless of yesterday's session gain. Thus, the company's titles have increased in value by 16.4% so far this year.

The company will present an update on the state of the business for the first quarter next Tuesday, after earning 51% more in fiscal year 2022.

The company has also been active in the market with several purchases in recent years to diversify its income, most recently last March, when it took a controlling position in the capital of Cámara Laboratorios y Metrología (CLM) after an agreement with the Chamber of Commerce of Madrid.