Billionaire investor, Mr. Femi Otedola has divested major shares in Transcorp Incorporated Plc to Mr. Tony Elumelu’s HH Capital Limited which has main stake in the diversified conglomerate.
The acting Company Secretary, Transcorp, ‘Funmi Olofintuyi in a statement on the Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX) Friday, stated that HH Capital Limited acquired 1,999,784,173, bringing its total stake to 11,990,957,350 units, representing 29.5 per cent of the company’s total shares as of April 28, 2023.
Olofintuyi said, “As noted in our previous communication, the Company welcomes the continued expression of confidence in its leadership and management by the investing public, as we continue our unwavering commitment to superior stakeholders’ returns, anchored in our ideology of Africapitalism.
“Rest assured, we are committed to remaining resolute in executing our Group’s strategy of making strategic investments in key sectors within the Nigerian economy, transforming Africa, and contributing positively towards building prosperity for all.”
HH Capital Limited, a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) owned by Elumelu, had acquired 9,697,189,984 units of shares, bringing its total holdings in Transcorp Incorporated to 9,991,173,177 units, representing 25.58 per cent of the company’s total shares as of April 25.
Femi Otedola had announced in April that he had acquired 5.05 per cent of Transcorp making him the second-largest shareholder of the company. The purchase immediately triggered a rally for the share price of the stock, doubling in two weeks.
In response to Femi Otedola’s acquisition, Elumelu consolidated his holdings, increasing his ownership stake to about 25 per cent which he announced on April 26, 2023.
A stockbroker in the capital market told THISDAY that Otedola had reached a deal with Elumelu to exit the conglomerate that is into Power, Oil & Gas, and Hospitality sectors.
With more purchases by HH Capital Limited, Femi Otedola, according to capital market source, had sold his stake to Elumelu exiting his entire stake from the conglomerate.
Market official data indicate a total of 2,413,144,252 shares were sold as an off-market trade based on three deals. The official transaction price was N3.12.
APT Securities Limited and United Capital Securities handled the transaction for HH Capital Ltd and Femi Otedola respectively.
Otedola holds the most shares in FBN Holdings, and the majority-own Geregu Power.
As the chairman of Geregu Power, one of Africa’s fastest-growing power-generating companies, Otedola has demonstrated his ability to create value and drive growth.
In 2021, Otedola became the largest shareholder in Nigeria’s oldest bank, First Bank of Nigeria Holdings Limited (FBNH), and his influence has significantly impacted the financial service group’s performance.
In the first nine months of 2022, the lender’s profit increased by 123 percent, from N40.9 billion ($93.4 million) to N91.29 billion ($208.8 million), thanks to its well-diversified loan portfolio.
As the seventh most valuable company on the Nigerian Exchange, Geregu Power is currently worth over $1.7 billion, thanks to a 223 per cent increase in its stock price since its debut on October 5, 2022.
Last Thursday, Transcorp announced its chairman has upped his interest to 25.9 per cent or 10.5 billion shares, conferring more than a fourth of the corporation’s voting rights on him as the only principal shareholder.
UBA Holdings, which comes next in the hierarchy, holds less than 10 per cent.
Transcorp has three power plants, which account for 2,000 megawatts or more than 40 per cent of Nigeria’s total power-generating capacity.
Transcorp Nigeria owns the 5-star Transcorp Hotels in Abuja and Lagos as well as Transcorp power plant in Afam and an oil block OML in Rivers State.
The conglomerate’s total assets stood at N464.5 billion at the end of March, compared to N442.7 billion as of the end of last year, going by its first quarter’s earnings report.
The stock price of added N0.36 Week-on-Week (WoW) to close at N2.81 per share from N2.45 per share it opened for trading.
