The US-based QVT Fund, which has become known on the market over the last few months due to its attempt to twist the arm of the Czechs at Zentiva into increasing the price in the tender offer they were running for Sicomed, and also due to its position as Asirom minority stockholder, bought a 5.6% stake in the IT&C group Flamingo International.
The stake is worth some 3.5 million euros on the Bucharest Stock Exchange.
Flamingo is the third investment of the fund on the Romanian market to be made public, after Sicomed and Asirom, in which it owns 12.9% and 10.77% respectively. QVT is now the second largest shareholder in Flamingo after founder Dragos Cinca, who controls 61.5%.
The fund manager told ZIARUL FINANCIAR that this acquisition was about the retail space held by Flamingo, which makes it attractive for foreign retail chains, and not necessarily the profit.
"The market obsesses about revenues and profits, but we believe market share to be the most important.
"A foreign retailer will be more interested in the (amount of) retail space rather than in the profits the company posted," Angelo Moskov, the fund''s manager stated.
He added he had no information regarding the immediate interest of foreign companies in Flamingo, but believed Western European retail chains could be interested in the company as either a target for takeover or a partner to work with.
"The retail industry mammoths are mainly interested in taking over retail space," Moskov said.
Flamingo owns both retail and assembly and distribution operations for computer parts, and is to absorb the Flanco network through a complex operation entailing the distribution of Flamingo shares to Flanco shareholders.
Flamingo operates approximately 115 stores with a total surface area of 14,000 square metres, while Flanco comprises about 100 stores with a total surface area of 30,000 square metres.
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