Lenzing's €300 Million Cash Call: 42.5% Reference Discount Sends Shares to €13.18

Lenzing stock trades ex-rights at €13.18 after its €300 million rights issue; Berenberg cut the shares to Hold and its target to €17.00.

Lenzing shares changed hands at €13.18 on Tuesday, a decline of 4.3%, as the market digested the arithmetic adjustment triggered by the fibre producer's fully underwritten €300 million rights issue. The drop is mechanical rather than a reflection of lost value: the stock is trading ex-rights, carrying a theoretical reference discount of 42.50% against the price that would apply with the subscription entitlement still attached. Existing shareholders who do not take up their rights will see their stakes diluted accordingly.

The board, with supervisory board approval, signed off on the capital increase to raise fresh equity. Subscription rights began trading on the Vienna Stock Exchange on Tuesday and will continue through 14 October 2026, while the subscription period itself runs until 20 October 2026 — giving investors roughly two weeks from publication of the subscription offer to decide whether to participate.

Terms of the Issue

Up to 34,756,362 new shares are being issued at a subscription price of €8.65 apiece, with a 10-for-9 ratio: holders receive nine new shares for every ten they already own. Key anchor investors have already committed. The B&C Group, pulp producer Suzano and Oberbank have each undertaken to exercise their full subscription entitlements, a backstop that management hopes will shore up the balance sheet and fund the "Grow Nonwovens, Reset Textiles" strategy.

Berenberg Steps Back

Sentiment took a further hit on Friday when Berenberg's Sebastian Bray downgraded the stock from "Buy" to "Hold" and cut his price target sharply, from €29.50 to €17.00. The analyst pointed to higher viscose and cotton prices failing to feed through to the company's operating results as expected, alongside the looming equity raise and a generally weaker outlook for earnings. Persistent raw material costs, rising interest rates and questions over Suzano's level of engagement added to the cautious tone, according to APA. The combination of margin risk and dilution has left many investors watching from the sidelines.

Valuation and What Comes Next

Pre-market indications put the stock at €13.72, close to its 52-week low of €13.14, with a market capitalisation of €720.51 million. The real test comes on 5 November 2026, when Lenzing reports third-quarter figures — the first hard evidence of how earnings power and the cost base are actually holding up under current industry conditions.