AMSTERDAM (Reuters) – Dutch food retailer Ahold came under pressure to break apart by hedge funds Paulson & Co. Inc. and Centaurus Capital, which said such a move would boost its market value by more than a quarter.
The two funds said they jointly held 6.4 percent and planned to enter a “constructive dialogue” with Ahold management and shareholders to push for a restructuring that could raise the retailer’s market value to more than 9 euros per share, or around 14 billion euros ($18 billion) from a current capitalization of over 11 billion euros.
Ahold shares were up 3.4 percent on Euronext Amsterdam at 7.36 euros at 1005 GMT, outperforming a 0.5 percent rise on the DJ Stoxx retail index.
