Sony agrees to halve its stake in Olympus with sale to JPMorgan
By Bloomberg
Sony Corp. agreed to sell half its stake in Olympus Corp. to raise money for strategic investments, just two years after the Japanese companies formed a medical-device venture.
Sony entered into a contract to sell the shares to JPMorgan Chase & Co., reducing its holding to about 5 percent, the electronics maker said in a statement Wednesday. The stock is valued at 76 billion yen ($632 million) based on Wednesday’s closing price of 4,420 yen.
Tokyo-based Sony, the largest shareholder in the maker of endoscopes and cameras, pared its holdings after agreeing in 2012 to pay 50 billion yen for the stake. The electronics maker intends to maintain its relationship with Olympus.
“We plan to use the funds to strengthen our financial base and for growth investments,” said Koji Kurata, a spokesman for Sony. “We still intend to continue collaborating and maintain our partnership.”
Chief Executive Officer Kazuo Hirai has said he wants Sony to move into health-care equipment by using the edge its image sensors have over rivals. Those sensors also are used in smartphones and compact cameras.
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