The Wallenberg family's power company Investor has been buying shares in Ericsson recently – for nearly three billion kronor.
We like the company and think the valuation was reasonable, says Christian Cederholm, CEO of Investor.
The investment company Investor, controlled by the Wallenberg family and a major shareholder in companies such as Ericsson, Astra Zeneca, and Atlas Copco – has a well-filled cash reserve. This is shown in the interim report released on Wednesday.
We've had a period and also have significant challenges both geopolitically and macro-wise. But the companies have, with different conditions and different markets, handled it very well, says Christian Cederholm, Investor's new CEO who took office in May.
Billion-dollar purchase in Ericsson
In just a few weeks, Investor bought shares in Ericsson – for nearly three billion kronor, something mentioned in the interim report. But the reason for this, Cederholm is sparse with commenting.
We like the company and think the valuation was reasonable. So we did it. You shouldn't read too much into a single quarter.
And when it comes to the major blow Ericsson received after buying the cloud service company Vonage – Cederholm says the future will show if it was a failed deal.
As for the price and timing, it wasn't optimal. But the important thing here is to see what you can do with it.
Pros and cons of a Trump win
The plans going forward for Investor, according to Christian Cederholm, are to continue investing in their business areas. But he also mentions that there are challenges ahead.
We have geopolitical challenges and there's war in the world. And it's clear that it creates uncertainty for our companies.
We're trying to make sure our companies are well-equipped to deliver good development regardless.
And when it comes to the upcoming US election, which is leaning towards a Trump win according to analysts, Cederholm says it can be both good and bad.
We and our companies will, as said, be forced to adapt and work with the administration that becomes. There will be pros and cons with all alternatives.
Karin Rader/TT
Facts: This is how Investor is doing
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The investment company Investor reports an adjusted net asset value – i.e., the value of the assets minus the company's liabilities – of 969.4 billion kronor. This corresponds to 317 kronor per share.
This is an increase of 8 percent during the quarter and a total return of 9 percent, which can be compared to the return on the Stockholm stock exchange during the period of 2 percent, according to Investor.
Investor is a major shareholder in companies such as Ericsson, Astra Zeneca, and Atlas Copco.
Source: Investor
