U.K. Government Cuts NatWest Stake to 17.97%
By Ian Walker
The U.K government has sold more shares in NatWest Group, reducing its shareholding to 17.97% of the company's voting rights, as it steps closer to returning the lender to private ownership.
In a regulatory disclosure Friday NatWest said that the Treasury has sold 85.4 million shares at an undisclosed price, and now has 5.97 billion voting rights. It previously had 18.99% of the bank's voting rights.
Each voting right equates to four shares and the stake is worth 5.12 billion pounds ($6.74 billion) based on NatWest's closing share price of 343.0 pence.
The government's stake in the bank resulted from its 2008 bailout of Royal Bank of Scotland, which bought NatWest in 2000 and rebranded the enlarged company as NatWest Group in 2020. The U.K. spent 45.5 billion pounds on the bailout and, at one point, owned 84% of the bank.
This latest reduction is part of the government's roadmap to exit its position and return the bank to private ownership by 2025-2026.
Write to Ian Walker at ian.walker@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
August 30, 2024 09:25 ET (13:25 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2024 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.-
What’s Happening in the Markets This Week
-
Worst-Performing Stock ETFs of the Quarter
-
Q3 in Review and Q4 2024 Market Outlook
-
Top-Performing Stock ETFs of the Quarter
-
September Jobs Report Forecasts Show Moderate Hiring Gains
-
Port Strike a Headache for Shippers but a Potential Tailwind for Certain US Transport Stocks
-
13 Charts on Q3′s Roller-Coaster Rally for Stocks and Bonds
-
5 Stocks to Buy Instead of Overpriced US Equities
-
Consumer Defensives: Despite Angst, Thirsty Investors Have Names to Pursue
-
Industrials: Many Stocks Overvalued After Q3 Outperformance
-
Basic Materials: Despite Index Rise, We See Multiple Long-Term Opportunities
-
What the Election Could Mean for Big Tech Stocks
-
3 Lessons From Recent Stock Market Drama
-
Consumer Cyclicals: Even Amid Moderating Consumer Spending, We See Discounts
-
Healthcare: Valuations Look Fair Overall, With Select Industries Still Undervalued
-
Utilities: Falling Interest Rates, Growth Outlook Boosting Stocks