Ducati Being Taken Over? from Bikes in the Fast Lane

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Ducati Being Taken Over?

February
2008

  File under Ducati News
  Author: Mike Werner
  Location: Normandy, France

Trading in the Ducati shares have been suspended today amidst strong rumors that the majority shareholder, Investindustrial, plans to take over the whole company.

Their plan is to pay US$ 670 million for all of Ducati, and take it off the stock exchange. They currently own 29% of Ducat. The takeover could happen as early as next week. This puts Ducati totally in private hands.

Is this a good thing? IMHO, I don't think so. The company can be easily broken up in pieces and sold, and investments in the future would depend on their own private backing, not on raising capital on the market.

The turmoil at Ducati never ends, does it? CEOs come and go, top staff leave, investment companies keep buying and selling the company. But in the mean time, they keep producing some of the best motorcycles, and they win the top spots in the motorcycle racing worlds.

Scary....

Via: Reuters