German tourism firm TUI Group has sold its stake in Hapag-Lloyd, with the money raised from the sale to be reinvested in its core business. TUI, which years ago mulled bidding to take over the Hamburg containerline, is selling its remaining 8.5m Hapag-Lloyd shares for a price of around EUR29.50 per share. It sold another 6m shares in the line in March.
“The proceeds will be reinvested in the transformation of TUI as the world’s leading integrated tourism business, focused on own hotel and cruise brands, and to further strengthen TUI’s balance sheet,” TUI said.
Hapag-Lloyd’s shareholding is complex, thanks to its many mergers of late. CSAV has the largest stake, followed by the Hamburg government and Klaus Michael Kuhne after which a mix of Middle Eastern sovereign funds makes up the next set of significant shareholders in the wake of the German line’s merger with UASC.
