Ferrovial AGM to vote today on HQ change, which would be approved by 50% of shareholders; Norges rectifies and will support the proposal

ferrovial junta 2022

Intermoney: Ferrovial’s Shareholders’ Meeting will debate and vote today on the Board of Directors’ proposal to move its registered office to the Netherlands, in order to be able to list on Wall Street without having to resort to ADRs. The proposal, announced on 28 February, has caused considerable political turmoil. In the event that the measure is approved, shareholders who oppose it could exercise their right of separation by selling their shares to Ferrovial itself for €26 each. The company has set a payout limit of €500 million for this concept, meaning that, theoretically, if 2.6% of shareholders claim to exercise this right, the operation would not be executed. Yesterday, the Norwegian fund Norges changed its mind and will finally support the proposal.

Assessment: We will see the result of the vote, which would be approved by 50% of the shareholders present and, in particular, the percentage of those opposed to exercising the right of separation. At the moment, the share is trading above €26, so a priori it should not do so. Operationally, Ferrovial increased its EBITDA by +19% in 2022 to €728 Mn, of which €550 Mn (76%) was generated in the Concessions division. The weight of the US market in this business is evident, as last year 89% of EBITDA was based there, a trend that, if anything, should increase in the future.

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The Corner has a team of on-the-ground reporters in capital cities ranging from New York to Beijing. Their stories are edited by the teams at the Spanish magazine Consejeros (for members of companies’ boards of directors) and at the stock market news site Consenso Del Mercado (market consensus). They have worked in economics and communication for over 25 years.