Lenzing launches €300 million rights issue at steep discount
Lenzing AG, the Austrian cellulose‑fibre producer, opened a fully underwritten €300 million rights issue on 1 October 2026. The company offered 34.76 million new shares at €8.65 each, representing a 42.5% discount to the theoretical ex‑rights price based on the previous day’s close. Existing shareholders are entitled to nine new shares for every ten they currently hold.
The rights issue is being coordinated globally by BNP Paribas, UniCredit, Commerzbank and Erste Group, with Raiffeisen Bank International also acting as an underwriter. The deal is expected to raise approximately €300 million before underwriting costs.
Use of proceeds and restructuring plan
Lenzing stated that the capital raised will fund its restructuring programme, accelerate the shift toward non‑woven applications and strengthen its balance sheet. The company will cease fibre production at its Heiligenkreuz plant in Austria by the end of the first quarter of 2027 and at its Grimsby site in the United Kingdom by the end of 2027. The planned sale of its Purwakarta site in Indonesia remains ongoing. Lenzing is targeting €120 million of cost savings against its 2025 cost base, has secured up to €300 million of additional financing, and has extended existing financing arrangements through 2030.
Financial targets include increasing EBITDA by €150 million over the medium term, achieving an EBITDA margin of 20%‑25%, and reducing net debt to less than 2.5 times EBITDA.
Shareholder commitments
Lenzing’s two largest shareholders, B&C Group and Brazil‑based Suzano, together control about 52.25% of the company and have committed to subscribe for 18.16 million new shares, amounting to roughly €157.1 million. Suzano will invest about €22.5 million directly and will transfer subscription rights covering 1.76 million shares to a B&C Group company. After the issue, B&C Group’s indirect holding is expected to be about 39.64% and Suzano’s about 12.60%.
Oberbank, which holds approximately 3.87% of Lenzing, has pledged to subscribe for 1.34 million new shares worth about €11.6 million.
Goldman Sachs Asset Management, managing a 6.20% stake on behalf of three NN Group entities, plans to sell existing shares without subscription rights in a private placement before the rights issue opens, expecting to raise around €18 million to fund those entities’ participation.
Market reaction
Following the announcement, Lenzing shares fell as much as 14.6%, reaching a 52‑week low on the day of the launch.