Sainsbury Shares Surge As The QIA Returns
After the recent much publicised and ultimately unsuccessful takeover attempt by the Qatar Investment Authority (QIA) it seems that the wealthy investment fund is back in the market for another look at Sainsbury. It was today confirmed that the QIA has acquired a further 7 million shares in the operation at a cost of over £20 million. This takes the investment fund’s stake up to 25.3% but still leaves the QIA with losses of over £1 billion on their original share acquisitions.
The bizarre thing is that since the QIA has shown an interest in Sainsbury the group has been performing much better and claiming back some of the market share it lost over recent years. A number of high profile management changes seem to have put the company back on course and it is now a serious challenger to the likes of ASDA and Tesco on the high street. But is there more behind the QIA share purchase today?
The general opinion is that the QIA will return to Sainsbury at some point in the future as they hold too large a stake to retain forever and a day. Whether they may look to structure an agreed deal in the future remains to be seen, but the £20 million purchase today is relatively minor in the overall picture.
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