Retail giant Frasers Group has acquired a 5.77% stake in athletic apparel manufacturer Puma, worth over €5.5m, plus additional put option shares valued at €187m

Frasers Group has snapped up a stake in sportswear heavyweight Puma.

The retail powerhouse has acquired 246,000 shares in the athletics firm, according to German filings published on Thursday and revealed by City AM.

With Puma’s share price currently sitting at €22.50, this 5.77 per cent holding is valued at over €5.5m.

Frasers Group, established by British entrepreneur Mike Ashley, also owns Flannels, Sports Direct, House of Fraser and Debenhams.

A portion of the shares purchased by Frasers are held directly, whilst the bulk have been secured through a put option – allowing the purchaser to offload assets at a predetermined price ahead of a specified date – City AM understands, as reported by City AM.

Alongside the direct shareholding, Frasers has secured an additional 8.3m put option shares, valued at a further €187m based on Thursday’s trading price.

Three million of the put option shares expire mid-next month, whilst a further one million run until September, with the balance set to lapse in December.

The shares are owned by Frasers Group but recorded under Ashley’s name in line with German stock market regulations.

Puma, established in Germany in 1948, ranks as the globe’s third-largest sports clothing manufacturer. It has moved its UK headquarters from London to Manchester‘s Circle Square development as the city cements its position as Britain’s sportswear capital.

The company’s shares climbed three per cent on Thursday but have fallen 20 per cent over the past year.

Frasers controls substantial positions in fashion businesses Hugo Boss, Asos and Boohoo. The British entrepreneur frequently takes an active role in his investment portfolio, having lately sought board representation at Debenhams whilst the retailer endeavours to orchestrate a recovery.

Puma and Frasers Group were contacted for comment by City AM.

Puma announced last year that it was moving its sales, marketing, merchandising, finance, people and operations and direct to consumer departments to Manchester. At the time, Lucynda Davies, UK managing director at Puma, said: “Being surrounded by such a strong line up of industry was an important factor, and to find somewhere in the heart of Manchester’s thriving tech community is exactly what we hoped for.

“Being based at Circle Square will also open up a host of opportunities to tap into the city’s creative talent pool and strengthen our existing links with academic partners like Manchester Metropolitan University – of which we get the added benefit of Bruntwood SciTech being a partner.”

This article was written by

Follow

Analyst’s Disclosure: I/we have no stock, option or similar derivative position in any of the companies mentioned, but may initiate a beneficial Long position through a purchase of the stock, or the purchase of call options or similar derivatives in MISL over the next 72 hours. I wrote this article myself, and it expresses my own opinions. I am not receiving compensation for it (other than from Seeking Alpha). I have no business relationship with any company whose stock is mentioned in this article.

Seeking Alpha’s Disclosure: Past performance is no guarantee of future results. No recommendation or advice is being given as to whether any investment is suitable for a particular investor. Any views or opinions expressed above may not reflect those of Seeking Alpha as a whole. Seeking Alpha is not a licensed securities dealer, broker or US investment adviser or investment bank. Our analysts are third party authors that include both professional investors and individual investors who may not be licensed or certified by any institute or regulatory body.

Renting for an adult is more than twice as expensive in outer London than other UK cities, increasing to three times as expensive in inner London, meaning the income needed to live “with dignity” – defined as being “able to take part in the world around you in a meaningful way” – in London is far more than other UK cities.

Guy Gittins
Group CEO & Executive Director

Good morning, everyone, and thank you for joining the Foxtons’ 2025 Full Year Results Presentation. I’m joined, as always, by Chris Huff, our Group CFO, and we will answer any questions at the end of the call.

This morning, I will take you through some of the highlights of 2025, provide an update on the London property market. Chris will then talk you through the financials, and I will finish with an update on our operational progress in the year, followed by some detail on the outlook for 2026.

We delivered 5% revenue and EBITDA growth in the year, driven by incremental acquisitions revenue and operational progress in areas such as Lettings, cross-selling and financial services. These higher revenues offset the challenging operating environment, including a volatile sales market and cost headwinds to deliver flat operating profit.

These results highlight the resilience of our business as a result of our strategy to position Foxtons firmly as a Lettings-led business. Our portfolio now exceeds 32,000 tenancies, which is up over 50% over the last 5 years, and these tenancies generate highly valuable reoccurring revenues. In 2025, these revenues generated over 2/3 of group revenue.

We delivered 8% Lettings market share growth through improved landlord attraction, retention to build on our position as London’s largest agent. And impressively, for a London-focused business, we are also the U.K.’s largest Lettings brand.

We continue to execute our strategy

Apple introduced the world to MacBook Neo. It may not be the most powerful computer or the one with the most features, but Apple made sure to make it more affordable for anyone who wants the upgrade.

Here’s Why You Should Upgrade to the MacBook Neo

Apple recently unveiled the latest Mac in their lineup, and it is in the form of a new laptop computer called the MacBook Neo.

According to Apple’s senior vice president of Hardware Engineering, John Terminus, the MacBook Neo “delivers the magic of the Mac at a breakthrough price.”

It offers a blend of premium Mac features and notable performance for an affordable price. Here is why this is one of the top computers to consider for your next upgrade or switch from a Windows PC.

Budget-Friendly

One of the defining qualities of the MacBook Neo is its budget-friendliness. The new Mac was designated by Apple to be its midrange laptop, offering an affordable choice in the lineup.

The MacBook Neo starts at $599 in the United States and is cheaper for those who will get it via the Education program at only $499. However, this base variant comes with only 256GB of storage and without the Touch ID.

In comparison, the previous cheapest Mac in the lineup is the MacBook Air, and over the years, it started at an average price of $999.

Apple Silicon: A18 Pro

Apple may have stayed away from its flagship M-series for the Neo, but they still gave it the Silicon chip in the form of the A18 Pro.

The chipset is the same one that powers the iPhone 16 Pro series, and Apple claimed that it is still 50% faster than the latest Intel Core Ultra 5. The company also noted that it is up to three times faster for on-device AI workloads and two times faster for photo editing and similar tasks.

The MacBook Neo comes with an integrated 5-core GPU and a 16-core Neural Engine to support on-device AI.

MacBook’s Features

The Neo is a full-fledged MacBook, but it is more comparable to the M1 version of the MacBook Air as it does not have the MagSafe charging port.

It only comes with two USB-C ports for charging, data connection, and connecting an external display, as well as a headphone jack. It also brings Wi-Fi 6E and Bluetooth 6 to deliver the latest wireless connection features to the computer.

Lightweight Laptop

The 13-inch laptop only weighs in at 2.7 pounds or approximately 1.3 kilograms, making it a lightweight laptop for daily use. The M5 MacBook Air also weighs the same as the Neo.

Fun Colors on MacBook

The MacBook Neo features four colors to choose from, and these include the classic Silver, Blush (Pink), Citrus (Yellow, but almost Yellow Green), and Indigo (Navy Blue).

Originally published on Tech Times