Key Ferrari Investors Move to Block Unwanted Buyers
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| Piero Ferrari |
Ferrari NV's two largest investors signed a shareholders' pact that effectively protects the Italian sports-car maker from unwanted suitors
The agreement between Exor SpA, the Agnelli family holding company, and Piero Ferrari, son of Ferrari's founder, will take effect in the first few days of January after the car maker is spun off next month from Fiat Chrysler Automobiles NV. The spinoff ends Fiat Chrysler's 30 years of exclusive control of Ferrari.
Exor and Mr. Ferrari had previously disclosed their intention to sign a shareholders' agreement though no details had been released.
As part of their agreement, Exor and Mr. Ferrari will consult ahead of Ferrari shareholders' meetings with the aim of forming a common stance. In the event Mr. Ferrari wants to sell shares to a third party, Exor will have the right to acquire the stake at the price Mr. Ferrari might have received from a potential buyer.
Mr. Ferrari also has the right to make the first offer for any shares Exor might decide to sell. Exor would be free to accept or reject Mr. Ferrari's offer.
Ferrari, whose sports cars on average are priced about €250,000 ($274,000) and in the case of limited editions can top €1 million, has been listed on the New York Stock Exchange since October, when Fiat Chrysler sold 10% of its stake in the company in an initial share sale. Fiat Chrysler's remaining 80% stake will be spun off to its shareholders by Jan. 3. Ferrari is slated to begin trading on the Milan stock exchange a day later. Mr. Ferrari is retaining his 10% stake.
As Fiat Chrysler's largest shareholder, Exor will become the biggest investor in Ferrari following the spinoff, with a 24% stake and 33.4% of the voting rights. With Mr. Ferrari's 15.4% of the voting rights, the two will control just under 49% of votes at shareholders' meetings. Ferrari, like Fiat Chrysler, offers extra votes to long-term investors.
"Now that Ferrari is beginning a new chapter in its story, our two families have signed this agreement in order to provide all the stability necessary to guarantee Ferrari's strength and its uniqueness for the future," Exor Chairman and Chief Executive John Elkann said.
The pact runs for five years and will automatically renew if neither side terminates the agreement. Eric Sylvers, The Wall Street Journal – Dec. 26, 2015