Rolls-Royce Holdings PLC (LON:RR.) has seen the exit of activist shareholder ValueAct Capital Management as it mulls a £1.5-2bn fundraise to recover from the coronavirus hit.
The San Francisco-based investment company has sold its entire stake five years after becoming the aeroengine maker's largest shareholder, the Financial Times reported, for an estimated overall loss of 20%.
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The hedge fund built a 10% holding in the engine manufacturer in 2015 following a series of profit warnings, but trimmed it to 4.5% from 9.48% last April according to public filings.
Meanwhile, other shareholders are pressuring the engineer to push back the fundraise to later this year over a lack of cash flow visibility and potential dilution with its shares at 15-year lows amid a deep crisis in the air travel sector.
Cash outflow is expected to be around £4bn in the full-year, though Rolls-Royce said last month it had access to £8bn in liquid funds.
However, its reliance on long-term contracts means it may need new sources of funding and shareholders are said to want reassurances that cashflow is moving in the right direction again,
Asset sales to raise funds are another possibility. Component arm ITP Aero has been put up for sale, according to reports, with India's Indra Sistema said to be one of the possible buyers alongside private equity groups.
Shares shed 2% to 248p on Friday at the opening bell.
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