Tankmaker KNDS Eyes IPO, Stake Sale as Buyout Firms Circle (1)

The German family shareholders of KNDS NV aim to reduce their ownership in the European tankmaker through a listing or stake sale to tap growing investor demand in defense companies, people with knowledge of the matter said.

The family members behind Krauss-Maffei Wegmann, which merged with France’s Nexter to create KNDS, have informed the German government that they’re considering selling part of their 50% stake and looking at options including an IPO and partial divestment, said the people. As part of this, Berlin is in the early stages of studying the purchase of a blocking minority of 25.1%, according to ...