Franklin Templeton proposed a buy-back price range of 0.2 lei to 1.5 lei (EUR0.045 to EUR0.342) a share. The proposal is subject to shareholder approval at a meeting due April 25.
Friday, Fondul Proprietatea closed up 0.6% at RON0.587 a share. At the current price, the stock package proposed for buy-back is valued at RON646.2 million (EUR147.6 million).
This would be the second buy-back program unfolded by Fondul Proprietatea, following a similar operation in 2011, through which the fund bought back 1.74% of its shares.
The buy-back program has as object the share capital decrease and would be carried out over a period of 18 months, Franklin Templeton said.
“The program execution will be subject to the availability of the necessary cash,” it added.
Fondul Proprietatea was set up in 2005 to compensate Romanians whose properties were seized during communism.
The fund has a share capital of RON13.77 billion lei, split into 13.77 billion shares with a face value of RON1.
End-February, foreign investors held 54.23% of the fund’s shares, while residents had 41.34%.