Solvay Indupa SA, an Argentine
petrochemicals maker, had its biggest gain in 10 months after
Belgian parent Solvay SA tagged the unit for sale, raising the
prospect of a deal that could benefit minority shareholders.
Indupa surged 13 percent to 1.98 pesos at 3:28 p.m. in
Buenos Aires. It was the biggest intraday increase since April,
leaving the stock up 37 percent over the past four days.
Brussels-based Solvay put Buenos Aires-based Indupa in its
“held for sale” accounting category at the end of last year,
Solvay Chief Executive Officer Jean-Pierre Clamadieu said
yesterday on a conference call. “You all know that the
political and economical situation in Argentina is quite complex
and probably not ideal to develop a business,” he said.
Indupa’s shares trade below the value of its assets as
recorded on the books, and investors are speculating that any
bids will use book value as a reference, Juan Jose Vasquez, an
analyst at Buenos Aires-broker Bull Market Brokers, said in a
telephone interview.
One risk for speculators is that Indupa’s bylaws don’t
require bidders to extend offers to minority holders, Vasquez
said.
The unit has been unprofitable since the second half of
2011. It operates plants in Bahia Blanca, Argentina, and Santo
Andre, Brazil, which produce PVC plastic and caustic soda.
To contact the reporter on this story:
Eduardo Thomson in Santiago at
ethomson1@bloomberg.net
To contact the editor responsible for this story:
David Papadopoulos at
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