Ferretti Group sets sail for Milan. The yacht maker’s board of directors (led by Alberto Galassi) approved its listing on the Italian Stock Exchange, setting the stage for its bid to join Euronext Milan. The move follows last year’s initial public offering on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, meaning Ferretti Group aims for a dual listing.
- The process is subject to the approval of the company’s shareholders – including the main shareholder, the Chinese Weichai Group – and the regulatory authorities and stock exchanges in Hong Kong and Milan.
- Notably, as Il Sole 24 Ore reports, the potential listing on Euronext Milan will require the dematerialisation of the company’s shares, which in turn is subject to approval by the Hong Kong Stock Exchange Authorities.
- The company had already attempted and backtracked on an Italian IPO in 2019, with Weichai believing the suggested €2 per share was below its real value.
Ever more public… If all goes according to expectations, the IPO in Milan will allow the company to increase its free float from 28% to over 50%, making Ferretti Group a primarily publicly-owned company. The Chinese group Weichai will be the one to sell shares.
- The company’s growth forecasts grew significantly in 2022, posting net revenues of over €1 billion (+14.6%), a net profit of €60.5 million and a net financial position equivalent to €365 million.
… and expanding. Meanwhile, Ferretti Group announced the acquisition of a production site of over 70,000 square metres, including dry dock, in San Vitale, in the province of Ravenna. The initial €40 million investment is to be followed by another 40 over the next three years to build new production spaces and an R&D centre, with the overall goal of increasing capacity by around 20%.
- That’s on top of other expansions amid increasing concerns of unduly Chinese infiltrations and espionage in Italy’s most strategic seaports.
- The development push touches the seaports in La Spezia, Ancona, and Taranto, where NATO recently established its Southern Maritime Command and where Ferretti, along with the Italian State, is pursuing a building project worth over €200 million.
