IP Group raises £52.4m from Ceres Power stake sale

(Sharecast News) - IP Group has raised £52.4m by selling shares in Ceres Power, leaving it with a small stake in the clean energy company it invested in eight years ago.
The investor in intellectual property-based ventures said it sold 9.16m shares of Ceres for 585p each taking to proceeds to date from its investment to £125.9m - more than seven times cost.

The shares sold represented 5.4% of Ceres's share capital. The sale leaves IP owning just 0.2% of Ceres.

IP shares rose 1.7% to 66.1p at 13:55 BST. Ceres shares dropped 8.3% to 577.8p.

IP said it first invested in Ceres in 2012 when the business was valued at less than £1m. The business is now worth almost £1bn and employs 300 people, IP said.

The sale also takes IP's total cash realisations so far this year to more than £168m, which is more than double the £79.5m for all of 2019.

Alan Aubrey, IP's chief executive, said: "It is a great example of how we've helped develop and support a world-leading company based on scientific research carried out in the UK. It has been a privilege to work with the Ceres team over the years and we're immensely proud of the company's achievements."

IP said it would review what to do with the cash in line with its capital allocation policy. It said the deal puts it in a stronger position to navigate economic uncertainty and take advantage of new investment opportunities.