SIF Transilvania shares up by 12.4%

The shares of SIF Transilvania (Financial Investment Company) surged by 12.4% yesterday, closing at a historic high of 4.17 RON/share. At an extraordinary General Meeting of Shareholders last Friday, the shareholders had decided to double the company’s share capital and to distribute free shares. At the start of the session, SIF Transilvania stock climbed at the highest possible rate – 15%, to a maximum of 4.26 RON/share. Transactions involving these shares hit a record level of almost 48 million RON (14.4 million euros), an almost tenfold increase on the normal level. Therefore, yesterday’s transactions accounted for over 61% of the total value of transactions conducted on the Stock Exchange. Brokers believe the key attraction for investors was that the decision was made by the shareholders at the GM, which now paves the way for future company decisions to be made in the same way. “The pronouncement made by the GM on Friday was very important because it showed that important decisions on increasing the share capital, by means of free shares or by means of contributions in cash, can still be made by shareholders, and that the management’s decision to increase the stake cap to 5% is actually available for discussion,” stated Laurentiu Floroiu, trading manager of EFG Eurobank Securities. Floroiu believes that the other SIFs will attempt to modify their status, so that their shareholders can also make key decisions. “If you consider the fact that foreign investors are attempting to take up positions in all of the five SIFs, it is to be expected that at some point they will want to make decisions with or without the management’s support.”