Exor (company)

Exor N.V.

Type	Public (N.V.)
Traded as	BIT: EXO FTSE MIB Component
ISIN	NL0012059018
Industry	Holding company
Founded	27 July 1927 (IFI)
Headquarters	Amsterdam, Netherlands
Key people	John Elkann (Chairman & CEO)
Products	Diversified investments, Reinsurance, Media, Automotive, Heavy equipment, Sports, Internet
Revenue	€119.51 billion (2020)[1]
Net income	€ 1 billion (2020)[1]
Total assets	€172.94 billion (2020)[1]
Total equity	€13.09 billion (2020)[1]
Owner	Giovanni Agnelli B.V. (52.99%)
Number of employees	263,284 (approx) (2020)[1]
Website	www.exor.com

Exor N.V. is a holding company incorporated in the Netherlands and controlled by the Italian Agnelli family through privately held company Giovanni Agnelli B.V. In 2021 it recorded revenues of more than $136 billion,^[1] becoming the 37th largest group in the world by revenue, according to the 2021 Fortune Global 500 List.^[2] It has a history of investments running over a century, which notably include auto and truck manufacturers Stellantis, Ferrari and CNH Industrial, global reinsurer PartnerRe, the football team Juventus F.C. and the international newspaper The Economist.

History[]

The company was founded on 27 July 1927 under the name of Istituto Finanziario Industriale by the Senator Giovanni Agnelli with the aim of reuniting under a single company all the shareholdings by him acquired, mainly in industrial sectors.

In 1957, IFI acquired control of Istituto Commerciale Laniero Italiano, which conducted activities in the financial field, particularly in the textile and wool sector. In 1963 it extended its operations to the banking system and changed its name to Istituto Bancario Italiano Laniero. Three years later, having spun off the banking business to Banca Subalpina, the company became Istituto Finanziario Italiano Laniero (IFIL), playing a parallel role to that of IFI and conducting similar investment management activities.

IFI gained holdings in numerous firms over the decades, including Unicem and 3M, many of which have since been divested. IFI listed preference shares on the Borsa Italiana in 1968. A reorganisation of the Agnelli family's holdings in 2008 led to the merger of IFI and IFIL to create Exor, the new name being taken from the French company (then the majority owner of Perrier water and the Château Margaux estate) which it acquired in 1991.^[3]

The family firm Giovanni Agnelli B.V. owns 52.99% of the share capital.^[4]

Exor is ranked 28th largest company by revenue according to the 2020 Fortune Global 500 lists.^[5]

Holdings[]

Declared shareholdings as of 28 February 2021:^[6]

Company	Sector / Industry	% of Share Capital	Voting Rights
PartnerRe	Financials	100.0%	99.7%
Juventus F.C.	Football team	63.8%	63.8%
Gedi	Media	89.6%[7]	89.6%
Economist Group	Media	43.4%	20.0%
Stellantis	Automotive industry	14.4%	14.4%
CNH Industrial	Capital Goods	26.9%	42.5%
Ferrari	Automotive industry/Luxury	22.9%	35.8%
Shang Xia	Fashion	77.3%	77.3%

Besides these major holdings, the company holds shares in the following listed and unlisted companies:^[8][9]

Financial Investments[]

• Cameco
• Ocado
• Schlumberger

Seeds[]

Exor's interest in new 21st century companies led to the launch of Exor Seeds, an early and late stage startup investment business, under the leadership of Noam Ohana since 2017. After four years, Exor Seeds has invested 250 million dollars in 42 companies around the world.^[10]

Other asset[]

• Faurecia (5.5%)^[11]

Shareholders[]

Financial data[]

Financial data in € Million^[1]

Year	2009	2010	2011	2012	2013	2014	2015	2016	2017	2018	2019	2020
	52,520	58,985	84.359	110,671	113,740	122,246	136,360	140,068	138,226	143,294	143,755	119,519
Net Income	-0,997	0,571	2,229	2,377	4,427	1,276	0,343	2,314	4,646	5,416	8,915	1
Assets	71,804	78,707	123,030	125,762	132,680	150,509	156,895	176,528	163,775	166,275	172,610	172,945
Equity	4,715	4,870	4,572	4,904	8,257	9,675	9,099	10,982	10,805	12,210	15,025	13,090
	190,651	196,723	195,404	287,343	305,963	318,562	303,247	302,562	265,017	272,170	268,979	263,284

Investor Days[]

On 5 October 2017 EXOR held its first Investor Day event, which was led by Exor & PartnerR's leadership teams which provided financial updates and the latest developments from their respective companies.^[13]

On 21 November 2019 a second one was hosted on the occasion of Exor's 10th anniversary. During the meeting John Elkann, together with the management team, illustrated the company's performances, growth and key achievements over the past 10 years.^[14]

Both events took place at the Agnelli Foundation in Turin (Italy).

Mergers, investments and acquisitions[]

The Economist[]

On 12 August 2015 the editor announced that Exor would purchase three-fifths of the Economist Group shares then owned by Pearson PLC.^[15] Exor held shares in the Economist Group prior to this purchase.^[15] This was considered to be the "most important change to The Economist's shareholding structure in almost 90 years."^[15] Pearson PLC which also owned the Financial Times had had a non-controlling 50% stake in the Economist Group since 1928. The Economist Group will buy back the remaining 40% of Pearson shares.^[16][15]

Cushman & Wakefield[]

On 2 September 2015 Exor closed the sale of Cushman & Wakefield to Chicago-based DTZ for $1,28 billion in net, generating a capital gain of $722 million.^[17]

PartnerRe[]

In 2016, Exor bought with a bid of $140 per share (total $6.9 billion).^[18] Originally it had offered $130 per share and in response Axis Re offered $120.31 per share in paper plus $11.50 in a pre-closing dividend.^[19]

In March 2020, Exor announced an agreement to sell PartnerRe to French mutual insurer Covea for $9 billion plus a $50 million cash dividend upon closing.^[20][21] The sale was not finalised, as Covéa withdrew the offer on 12 May 2020.^[22] In August 2020, Exor stated that Covea would invest €1.5 billion, partly in entities managed by PartnerRe.^[23]

GEDI[]

In December 2019, Exor agreed to buy a 43.7 per cent stake in GEDI, Italy's leading media group, for €102.4m from CIR, the holding company of the De Benedetti dynasty.^[24][25]

The acquisition was closed in April 2020. Consequently, Exor acquired control over GEDI and launched, through Giano Holding, a mandatory tender offer to acquire all of the ordinary shares of the group, successfully concluded on 10 August 2020. On the same date, Borsa Italiana ordered the delisting of the ordinary shares of GEDI from the Market Telematico Azionario (MTA).^[26]

Stellantis[]

In December 2019, FCA and Groupe PSA announced a merger, to be completed in 12/14 months.^[27][28][29] In July 2020, FCA's Chairman John Elkann and the CEO Mike Manley announced that the combined company will be called Stellantis, upon completion of the trans-Atlantic merger.^[30][31] The merger completed on 16 January 2021, with its common shares subsequently trading under the ticker symbol "STLA" on the Italian Bourse, Euronext Paris and New York Stock Exchange. At the completion date of merger, the combined company became the world's fifth-largest car maker by unit sales.^[32]

On 14 April 2021 Exor N.V. and Peugeot 1810, both significant shareholders in Stellantis N.V., signed a five-year agreement aimed at strengthening the relations between the Agnelli and Peugeot families and to provide support for Stellantis in its long-term success.^[33]

Via Transportation Inc.[]

In April 2020, signed an agreement to invest a total amount of $200 million to acquire a 8.87% of Via Transportation Inc., a technology company specialising in the dynamic, data-driven optimisation of public mobility systems in cities all around the world.^[34][35]

Cowboy[]

In August 2020, EXOR Seeds participated in the funding round launched by Cowboy, a Belgian e-bike start-up.^[36]

Shang Xia Group[]

In December 2020, Exor announced an investment of circa €80 million in the Chinese group Shang Xia, thanks to which the holding became the first Shang Xia shareholder with Hermés International.^[37]

Louboutin[]

In March 2021, Exor enters the French fashion house Christian Louboutin as a minority shareholder with 24% of the capital and with an investment of 541 million euros.^[38]

Casavo[]

In March 2021, Exor Seeds participated as lead investor on raising the capital of Casavo, Italian proptech StartUp with an instant buying platform to sell, live and buying homes in Europe.^[39]

WWICL[]

On June 16th, 2021 Exor signed an agreement with World-Wide Investments Company Limited of Hong Kong, setting up the newco Nuo spa, 50% owned by Exor and 50% owned by WWICL, to encourage and enhance the development of Italian medium-sized enterprises that produce high-end consumer goods.^[40]

Board of directors[]

Board of Directors in charge as of May 27th, 2021:^[41]

• John Elkann - chairman and chief executive officer
• Alessandro Nasi - vice chairman
• Andrea Agnelli - Non-independent director
• Joseph Bae - Independent non-executive director
• Melissa Bethell - Independent non-executive director
• Marc Bolland - Independent senior non-executive director
• Laurence Debroux - Independent non-executive director
• Ginevra Elkann - Non-independent director
• Ajay Banga - Independent non-executive director

References[]

External links[]

• Official website
• Business data for Exor N.V.:
  • Google Finance
  • Yahoo! Finance
  • Bloomberg
  • SEC filings