Market Responds to Suggestions that NN Group Acquire Delta Lloyd

November 25, 2015 by

Delta Lloyd NV, the Dutch insurer under pressure to bolster capital, climbed as much as 6.6 percent after Rabobank pitched the idea of a purchase by NN Group NV.

“There is a scenario possible by which NN Group would acquire Delta Lloyd at an attractive price,” Cor Kluis, an Utrecht, Netherlands-based analyst at Rabobank Groep, said in a note Tuesday. “We believe this could enhance the NN Group free cash flow per share by double digits.”

The insurer was trading 5.2 percent higher at 7.35 euros at 1:30 p.m. in Amsterdam on Tuesday. NN was down 0.4 percent.

Delta Lloyd has lost about 60 percent of its market value this year and a first-half loss of 533 million euros ($567 million) raised the question of a capital increase. The European Union will introduce stricter capital requirements in January under rules known as Solvency II.

The Amsterdam-based insurer announced the appointment Cliff Abrahams as chief financial officer last week. The previous CFO resigned in August after a Dutch court upheld a central bank decision to fine the insurer for trading on confidential information.

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