Sept 1 (Reuters) - British retail group Frasers said on Tuesday it planned to raise its stake in Hugo Boss to more than 50%, after a failed €2 billion ($2.32 billion) takeover attempt for the German fashion house in June. The group, owned by business tycoon Mike Ashley, also said it was reviewing its support for Hugo Boss Chairman Stephan Sturm. Frasers gave no further details of how and when it planned to raise its stake in Hugo Boss in a press release to the London Stock Exchange.
The group has been increasing its holding in the designer, known for its boxy men's suits, from the 26% it owned when it launched its June takeover bid and is now the company's biggest shareholder with 48%. Shares in Frasers were down 1.1% at 823 pence as of 0836 GMT, while Hugo Boss was up under 1%. "This (passing the 50% ownership mark) would be optically transformational for the Frasers P&L, and materially increase the complexity of the group's reporting," Jefferies analyst Andrew Wade said.
"The commentary regarding Mr Sturm would also indicate an increasingly hands-on approach," Wade added. Frasers said on Tuesday that if it ceases to support Sturm's position, it will make its stance publicly known. It did not give further details.
The group in November last year said it no longer had confidence in Sturm, but reversed that position in June saying it remained supportive of the executive and CEO Daniel Grieder. British newspaper the Times reported in July that Frasers was looking at installing its Chief Executive Michael Murray as Hugo Boss' CEO. When contacted by Reuters for comment on Tuesday, Hugo Boss said Frasers' statement did not result in any changes to its board with Sturm remaining in his role.
Last month, Hugo Boss said it would continue to maintain a constructive relationship with Frasers while advancing the execution of its strategy to deliver sustainable growth and long-term shareholder value through 2028. ($1 = 0.8626 euros) (Reporting by Prerna Bedi in Bengaluru; Additional reporting by Krisha Bhatt; Editing by Sonia Cheema and Sharon Singleton)
Source: Euronext Markets: Real-time Stock Market Data | live
