IAG's Iberia hedges Amadeus stake with Nomura

Iberia, Spain's biggest airline owned by International Airlines Group, has hedged its 6.66 per cent stake in technology firm Amadeus with Nomura International in an effort to safeguard its holding.

The stake has been hedged for 492m euros (4591m) via a private placing of derivatives.

Hedging deals are a type of transaction which are intended to minimise risk for investors, but also allow investors to reap the benefits of any gain in a share price.

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Normura released a statement on Wednesday saying that in relation to the hedging it has placed 29.8m in Amadeus at €16.50 a pop.

In a press release the previous evening IAG described the transaction as a "risk management exercise" enabling Iberia to "protect and lock-in the current value of its Amadeus shares while retaining some participation in any further share price appreciation".

IAG's share price fell 2.81% to 152.20p by 15:35.

NR