Kering extends Valentino purchase option deadline; shares gain 2.4% 📈

Kering (KER.FR) has been given more time to complete its acquisition of fashion house Valentino, which has improved sentiment around the company and led to a nearly 2.4% rise in the fashion giant's share price today. The deadline for exercising the option to purchase the remaining 70% stake from the Mayhoola fund has been postponed to 2029. The change in schedule provides financial relief to the French group, which is struggling with growing debt (€10.5 billion net at the end of 2024), and allows the new CEO, Luca de Meo, to focus on cost reduction and restructuring of the group. It should be recalled that in 2023, Kering bought a 30% stake in Valentino for €1.7 billion, and the value of the remaining 70% is estimated at around €4 billion.

With the extended deadline, Kering may focus on revamping its most important brands (especially the key Gucci brand) and improving operational efficiency before deciding to finalize the acquisition. This will allow both Kering and Mayhoola to implement their own development plans, and Valentino's current ownership structure will remain unchanged until at least 2028. 

The company's shares are trading at their highest levels since March this year and well above the 200-day EMA (gold curve on the chart), which has so far been a key control point for the long-term downtrend. Source: xStation spadkowego. Źródło: xStation