VW Refuses to Raise Bid for Scania Shares

Volkswagen AG says it won't richen its offer to buy the 37% of commercial truckmaker Scania AB it doesn't already hold. VW controls 89% of shareholder votes.

VW describes its existing bid of 200 kronor (€22) per share as "compelling" to the Swedish company's remaining stakeholders. Shares, currently worth about 180 kronor, were at 147 kronor when VW made its offer in February.

VW has said it will drop its offer if it fails to gain ownership of at least 90% of Scania. Under Swedish law, achieving that level will require remaining shareholders to sell their stakes. It also would enable VW to fully integrate Scania with the German company's own truck operations and those of MAN, which it acquired last year.

Bloomberg News notes that a Swedish pension fund and an insurer, which together own 1.5% of Scania, insist the company's shares will deliver better return if the truckmaker remains separately listed.

Scania reported its first-quarter revenue climbed 9% to 21.1 billion kronor (€2.3 billion), and its operating profit for the period jumped 17% to nearly 2.3 billion kronor (€249 million).