Tycoon Lawrence Stroll sells £120m stake in Aston Martin but remains largest investor in luxury car maker
Lawrence Stroll pocketed nearly £120 million after selling part of his stake in Aston Martin.
The billionaire’s investment vehicle, Yew Tree, sold 35 million shares in the supercar maker last week.
This reduced his consortium’s stake from 28 percent to 21 percent, but it remains Aston Martin’s largest investor.
Billionaire: Lawrence Stroll and his wife Raquel Diniz
It came as part of a deal with Chinese automaker Geely, owned by billionaire Li Shufu, to more than double his stake in the automaker to around 17.2 per cent worth £326 million.
Geely acquired approximately £42 million shares of Yew Tree, while Aston non-executive director Michael de Picciotto sold approximately £7.8 million worth of shares as part of the deal.
It makes Geely the company’s third-largest shareholder behind Stroll and Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, which also owns Newcastle United Football Club.
Aston Martin shares fell 2 percent, or 5.2 pence, to 259.2 pence.
Geely, owner of the Volvo and Lotus car brands, took a 7.6 per cent stake in Aston last year when the company launched a £653 million fundraiser to boost the company and pay off its debts.
The recent surge has sparked speculation that the Chinese conglomerate could be planning another takeover attempt at the automaker, after failing several times in the past.
The latest attempt in 2020 failed when Stroll took control of the company and became executive chairman.
Geely’s CEO Daniel Li also fueled bid rumors after saying a deal could help Aston Martin boost sales in China.
The new stake gives Geely the option of appointing a non-executive director to its board, but it rules out extending its stake above 22 percent until August next year.
In addition to Lotus and Volvo, the Chinese giant also controls the London Electric Vehicle Company, a maker of electric black taxis, and half of the Smart car brand in addition to Mercedes-Benz.
Geely’s move to increase its stake came after Aston Martin reported a 7 per cent rise in sales to £295m for the first three months of the year, while losses fell to £74.2m from £111.6m amid a strong demand for fast and expensive cars.