By P.R. Venkat


Shares of Uni-President Enterprises Corp. rose sharply at the open after the company agreed to buy Carrefour SA's Taiwan operations.

Expectations that the Taiwanese company will increase its market share, contributing positively to its earnings, helped the stock rise by as much as 6.2% to 71.70 New Taiwan dollars (US$2.40) on Wednesday.

Uni-President posted its sharpest intraday percentage gain since April 2020 and hit its highest level since September 2021.

Late Tuesday, Carrefour said that it is selling its entire 60% stake in Carrefour Taiwan to joint-venture partner Uni-President for an enterprise value of 2 billion euros (US$2.05 billion). The sale, which is expected to close by mid-2023, is part of the French supermarket-chain operator's effort to focus on Europe and Latin America.

Uni-President's core business includes food manufacturing and investments in other related businesses. Product categories include feeds, flour, edible oils, soy sauce, meat and dairy products.

Carrefour Taiwan manages 340 stores including 68 hypermarkets, 272 supermarkets and 129 shopping malls.

"We have a positive read from the transaction as we believe adding another strong retail brand under the group can further grow its shares in Taiwan's retail market," Citi analyst Angela Hsu said in a note.

She said that having full control will allow Uni-President to sell more of its products while strengthening its brand image.

The stock was recently trading at NT$68.60.


Write to P.R. Venkat at venkat.pr@wsj.com


(END) Dow Jones Newswires

07-19-22 2241ET