Yahoo Finance Champion Gymnast Li Ning Is Said to Weigh Bigger Stake in His Apparel Company
(Bloomberg) -- Legendary Chinese gymnast Li Ning is considering raising his holding in the sports apparel company that he founded to have more control over future strategy, according to people familiar with the matter.
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Li is weighing options, including possibly bringing in private equity partners to help finance a deal to increase his stake in Li Ning Co., the people said, asking not to be identified discussing confidential information.
Li has a stake of about 10.5% in his namesake company, mostly through Hong Kong-listed Viva Goods Co., which he is also chairman of and whose brands include European shoemakers Clarks and Testoni. He may increase his stake in Li Ning via Viva Goods, the people said.
Deliberations are at an early stage and Li may decide not to proceed with a deal, according to the people.
A representative for Li Ning said the company “hasn’t received any information” on the matter. Viva Goods didn’t respond to requests for comment.
Founded by Li in 1990, Li Ning was the worst performer on Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index last year, slumping 69% and wiping out HK$123 billion ($15.7 billion) in market value.
With consumer spending on the wane in China as the economy stutters, Li Ning’s peers such as Anta Sports Products Ltd. and Xtep International Holdings Ltd. struggled too, though not to the same extent. Their shares slid 26% and 49%, respectively, last year, but in 2024 Anta is down only 3.8% and Xtep is up 6.4%. Viva Goods has fallen 23% in 2024.
Li Ning jumped as much as 2.9% following Wednesday’s Bloomberg News report, having slumped 4.5% in the morning.
Li Ning’s revenue totaled 27.6 billion yuan ($3.8 billion) in 2023, while net income slid more than 20% to 3.2 billion yuan.
(Updates share price moves in seventh and eighth paragraphs.)
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