April 10, 2025

Kering in talks to sell a stake in Milan property to Qatari fund - report

Investing.com -- Kering (EPA: PRTP ) shares jumped around 7% in European trading Thursday following a report by Italy’s Corriere della Sera that the luxury group is negotiating the sale of a stake in its prime Milan property to the Qatar Investment Authority (QIA) for over €1.3 billion ($1.43 billion).

The stock was among the top gainers on France’s CAC40 , supported by broad-based market strength after U.S. President Donald Trump announced a pause on new tariffs.

Kering, which owns Gucci, acquired the property last year from Blackstone (NYSE: BX ) for €1.3 billion in what was then Europe’s largest property transaction in two years. The building at Via Monte Napoleone 8 includes Kering’s Saint Laurent store, along with tenants such as Prada (HK: 1913 ) and LVMH’s (EPA: LVMH ) Café Cova.

At the time, the Milan property deal marked the largest of its kind in Europe since March 2022, according to MSCI.

Via Monte Napoleone is ranked as the world’s second most expensive shopping street, behind only Fifth Avenue in New York, based on data from Cushman & Wakefield (NYSE: CWK ).

The potential sale of the Milan property to QIA comes at a time when the luxury group is under growing financial strain, driven by a sharp drop in sales at its flagship label, Gucci.

In January, Kering completed a similar transaction with Ardian, contributing three Paris assets to a joint venture while keeping a 40% stake. That deal generated €837 million in proceeds, which were used to help refinance the company’s debt.

Kering’s net debt has risen sharply, exceeding €10.5 billion in 2024, as a result of several high-cost acquisitions.

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