GETI-B.S - Getinge Group

[Makisig]

Hello All

 

With any luck some of our Nordic members may know something about Getinge Group, and in particular, Carl Bennet, who, through the super-voting A shares, effectively controls the company.  I am currently researching Getinge.

 

By way of background, Getinge is a highly diversified healthcare company, headquartered in Sweden.  It was a loss making division of Electrolux, until 1989, when Carl Bennet and his partner acquired it, turned it around and then listed it in Stockholm.  Bennet is the company Chairman and remains the dominant shareholder and appears to have most of his wealth invested in Getinge. 

 

The stock has been struggling recently: this is probably largely on foot of potentially serious FDA concerns pertaining to one significant division (the exact nature of these concerns remains something of a mystery). Nonetheless the stock is perhaps beginning to look cheap now.

 

However Getinge has been something of an acquisition machine in the past – and I am normally very wary of this type of company.  Particularly here, where there is a case to be made that perhaps the current difficulties are an indirect result of the many acquisitions management made in the past (not integrated properly? Taking the eyes off the ball?).

 

What I would like to know is: does anybody know much about Carl Bennet, or Getinge for that matter? 

 

Is Bennet the Philanthropic-type (not that there is anything wrong with Philanthropy!) that may not care much about the financial performance of Getinge any more?  Or is key the kind to take action if the company has lost its way?

 

Bennet seems fairly private and as I don’t speak Swedish I have found only limited references to him in English.  I would love to hear from anyone who knows about Bennet or Getinge.  I will of course share my research, if interested, when complete.

 

Best

 

Makisig

 

[alwaysinvert]

I don't have any insights on Bennet or Getinge, but I saw that he spoke to our largest financial newspaper this morning regarding the FDA issue  and was confident that they would reach a resolution in Q3.

 

It doesn't say that much more, but here is the clipping I read if you want to run it through google translate (the complete article is only available in print):

 

STOCKHOLM (Direkt) Getinges huvudägare och styrelseordförande Carl Bennet tror att bolagets konflikt med den amerikanska myndigheten FDA kommer att vara löst inom en snar framtid.

 

Det säger han till Dagens Industri enligt torsdagens tidning.

 

"Det kommer att bli en lösning under innevarande kvartal, det är min absoluta uppfattning och vår vd Johan Malmquist arbetar intensivt för det", säger Carl Bennet.

 

I slutet av förra året blev det känt att FDA genomfört ett antal inspektioner på produktionsanläggningar inom Getinges största affärsområde Medical Systems och under våren aviserade bolaget stora investeringar för att komma tillrätta med de av FDA utpekade kvalitetsproblemen.

 

Men FDA hade i maj fler frågor och diskussionerna fortsatte. I samband med rapporten för det andra kvartalet sade Getinges vd Johan Malmquist att han hoppades på att kunna ge mer information om samtalen inom en eller två månader. I torsdagens artikel uttalar Carl Bennet sitt stöd till Getinges vd.

 

Bennet is a social democrat which is highly unusual among the richest in Sweden, in particular due to the question of wealth taxation. Other than that I don't know much, seems very low profile.

[Makisig]

alwaysinvert,

 

thanks for your response.  I'll keep digging.

 

Makisig