Waterford crystal may sell German assets
Waterford Wedgwood Plc, the Irish crystal maker that's lost money for four years, said it is reviewing its controlling stake in German china and glassware unit Rosenthal AG, and hired JPMorgan Cazenove to give advice.
Waterford rose as much as 29 percent in Dublin trading, the steepest daily gain in more than three years. The review is expected to lead to a sale of Rosenthal with a price tag of between 150 million euros ($234 million) and 200 million euros, the Sunday Business Post reported yesterday.
''This would provide a welcome cash injection to the group,'' analyst Mark Healy at Davy Stockbrokers in Dublin said in a note, referring to the possibility of a sale of the unit.
Waterford has eliminated or unveiled plans to cut about 4,000 jobs since 2005 as it moves production from Ireland to lower-cost nations. In February, it said it would cut 311 jobs in Germany as part of a 12.5 million-euro reorganization at Rosenthal. Waterford is beset by competition from Asian rivals and the dollar's drop, which erodes the value of sales from its main U.S. market.
Waterford rose 2 euro cents to 0.9 cents at 10:35 a.m. in Dublin, the day's highest price. A close at that level would represent the biggest daily gain since May 4, 2005. The Dublin- based company has a market value of 48.2 million euros.
Waterford bought a majority stake in Rosenthal in 1998. The unit makes luxury porcelain under brands such as Versace.
The decision to carry out the strategic review came after the company had ''several unsolicited approaches'' to buy Rosenthal, the Sunday Business Post said. The division had sales of 170 million euros last year, the paper said.
Waterford owns almost 90 percent of Rosenthal, and this month secured an option to buy a further 5.7 percent of the subsidiary, according to the Post. That additional holding could clear the way for a sale of the unit, it reported. (Bloomberg)
- Louisa Nesbitt
