Gimv Sale Of Majority Stake In KÖBERL Group

Gimv announced that it has sold its majority stake in KÖBERL Group (facility management and building technology services) to Hungarian company B+N Referencia Zrt. The transaction is anticipated to have a positive impact of approximately €1.0 on Gimv's NAVps and the return on this investment has significantly exceeded Gimv's long-term portfolio return target of 15.0%. This is the third transaction that Gimv has complete post its 1H results. We see this as an indication of the superior quality of Gimv's portfolio companies and management's superior ability to navigate the recovering mid-market PE space. We note that, during 1H, Gimv announced that it will work towards doubling its portfolio size, will raise up to €300.0 (max) and will host a CMD on 22nd Jan'25, all of which we think are positive catalysts. We reiterate our BUY rating and €56.0 TP.
Investment Case: During 1H FY25, Gimv's portfolio hit a record high of €1.7b thanks to the robust performance of portfolio companies that continue to grow much faster than the overall economy. Gimv intends to double its portfolio size by raising capital, lengthening the investment horizon and taking on larger ticket sizes – we believe that this will result in significant long-term value creation due to the compounding effect over several years. Gimv also benefits from its adherence to a strict investment process, experience of its investment team and its ability to consistently achieve a portfolio result greater than 15.0%. We believe that the upcoming CMD is a positive catalyst for Gimv given its growing portfolio (rising profitability of portfolio companies), conservative valuations, relatively low use of leverage, and attractive dividend yield (>5.0%).