French investment company Wendel said 26 March 2008 it had raised its stake in Saint-Gobain to 20.6 %, from around 18% previously. "Wendel has crossed the threshold of 20% of the capital of Saint-Gobain and now holds 20.6% of the capital and 19.6% of the voting rights of Saint-Gobain", Wendel said in a statement. Wendel repeated it did not intend to take control of the world's largest building materials group. In the week ending 23/03/08, Wendel said it had agreed with Saint-Gobain to have 3 members on the company's board, & announced it may increase its stake to 21.5%. "For 21.5% of the capital, the investment in shares will represent approximately EUR 5.5BN", Wendel said. It said it had acquired protection against a decline in the price of Saint-Gobain shares until 2011 & 2012, covering around 40% of its investment, for a total of EUR 400M. v Wendel first revealed its Saint-Gobain holding in September 2007, and has been gradually building up its stake since then, while pushing for a greater say in the running of the company. Wendel has repeatedly said it backed Saint-Gobain's strategy and felt the group had the capacity to outperform its own targets. Saint-Gobain shares have fallen 28% since September 2007, compared to a 16% fall in the European construction and building materials sector during the same period, an underperformance which analysts have said reflects disappointment over the slower-than-expected implementation of Saint-Gobain's disposal programme.
