Frasers Group’s ASOS stake hits almost 20%

Frasers Group is ramping up its stake-building activity in ASOS with the company on 25 August revealing that its holding in the online fashion retailer and Topshop owner is now almost 20%. 

The stock exchange-listed retail group that’s controlled by entrepreneur Mike Ashley held a stake of only around 5% last October and just over 7% as recently as June.

The company also owns nearly 8% of Boohoo Group, but the slightly-more-valuable ASOS is clearly its key focus at present and its stake puts it ever closer to the 26% holding of the firm’s largest shareholder, Bestseller owner Anders Holch Povlsen.

The company is a serial acquirer of other businesses or stakes in firms and also has substantial holdings in big names Hugo Boss and Mulberry, among others. It’s interesting that following its acquisition of a more-than-20% stake in electricals e-tailer AO World a few months ago, it formed a “strategic partnership” with that business.

There’s no talk of anything like that so far with ASOS, although earlier this year it was reported that Frasers had been interested in getting more involved with ASOS and helping it with financing in exchange for a bigger stake, but was rebuffed. That was never confirmed.

The group has previously talked of its “long track record of establishing supportive shareholder positions in attractive retail companies” and its “clear strategy to identify opportunities to invest in businesses which complement our existing sport, premium and luxury businesses, or help us to build and further utilise our sector-leading ecosystem”.

Is the growing ASOS stake simply that or something more?  It will be interesting to see what happens next.