A.P. Moeller Shares Bounce Back

Danish A.P. Moeller shares rebounded on Friday after news of its purchase of Dutch tug and salvage company Wijsmuller Group Holding on Thursday, brokers said.

The two A P Moeller stocks, D/S 1912 and D/S Svendborg, traded at 69,500 crowns ($7,898) and 91,500 crowns respectively, 2.2 percent and 1.7 percent up from Thursday's close.

The Copenhagen bourse's top 20 index KFX was down 0.4 percent at 316.15.

Moeller shares have underperformed the KFX index by more than three percent the past 10 days, dented by news that Morgan Stanley within a year would cut the conglomerate's weight in its Denmark index.

"The shares are rebounding on the Dutch news and it seems foreign sale pressure in the shares has faded," a trader said.

Moeller's tug and salvage unit Svitzer said on Thursday it would buy Dutch Wijsmuller for around one billion crowns, a source said.

The acquisition was seen increasing Svitzer's fleet to more than 220 vessels from the present 70.