Nissan sells its 1.5% stake in Daimler, after Renault

Japan’s Nissan Motor said on Tuesday it was selling its approximately 1.5% stake in German automaker Daimler through an accelerated bookbuild offer, after a similar move by alliance partner Renault in March.

The French automaker, together with Nissan, had exchanged stakes with Daimler a decade ago to boost their industrial partnerships.

Cooperation is ongoing, Daimler and Renault said earlier this year, although people familiar with the matter had said larger initial plans never materialised and the cross-shareholdings were no longer assumed necessary.

Investors were guided to expect the shares to price at 69.85 euros ($83.86) each, a bookrunner organizing the deal said.

At that price, Nissan would reap just more than 1 billion euros ($1.2 billion) from the deal.

The block trade is being organized by Bank of America and Societe Generale.