In a recent surprising development, Capital Group Companies, a prominent investment management firm based in the US, has offloaded its shares in the Australian mining company, Fortescue. The shares, valued at approximately A$733.9M, were sold as per the details provided in an exchange filing on Wednesday.
This news follows a report by the Australian Financial Review on Tuesday, which revealed that an institutional investor had divested a stake worth A$1.1B in Fortescue. The divestment, led by billionaire Andrew Forrest, occurred after the market closed on Monday.
The exchange filing further disclosed that Capital Group Companies, along with its associated entities, initiated the sale of 31.6M shares in the mining company on Friday. The exact price at which these shares were sold remains undisclosed. However, based on Fortescue’s closing price of A$23.2 on Friday, the shares are estimated to be worth around A$733.9M.
Fortescue, recognized as the world’s fourth-largest iron ore miner, has seen its shares plummet by nearly 25% this year. This decline is attributed to weakening iron ore prices due to a decrease in demand from China, the world’s leading steel manufacturer.
The company has also experienced a significant reshuffling of its senior management team as part of its efforts to transform into a green energy company. Most recently, Julie Shuttleworth, global growth director, became the latest in a series of senior executives to leave the company, marking the sixth such departure in less than a year. Shuttleworth had been with the Australian firm, which has transitioned from iron ore to hydrogen, for over a decade. Shuttleworth was a key figure in the team of Andrew Forrest, the company’s founder and CEO. She initially held the position of CEO for the green energy division when it was first launched as Fortescue Future Industries.
