Shares in German sportswear group Puma surged more than 11% on Wednesday following a report by Manager Magazin that private equity firm CVC and brand management company Authentic Brands are exploring a takeover bid for the company.
The report claims Authentic Brands CEO Jamie Salter and CVC’s German head Alex Dibelius have shown interest in acquiring the 29% stake in Puma held by the Pinault family’s holding company, Artemis. Such a move could set the stage for a bidding contest over one of Europe’s best-known sportswear brands.
Artemis, however, denied that a sale process is underway, calling the German media report “factually false.” Reuters separately reported last week that Artemis would not sell its Puma stake at current market value, though Bloomberg has suggested the family has tested appetite for a deal, valuing the holding at around $960m.
Authentic Brands, backed by BlackRock, General Atlantic and Leonard Green, has built a reputation for acquiring and revitalising global consumer names, most notably acquiring Reebok from Adidas in 2021 in a deal that saw it edge out CVC.
CVC, one of Europe’s largest buyout firms, has a long track record of investing in consumer and retail companies.
Puma, spun out of French luxury group Kering in 2018, has seen its shares lose half their value this year, though Wednesday’s rally made it the top performer on the STOXX 600 index.
Neither CVC nor Puma commented on the report, while Authentic Brands did not respond to requests for comment.
