Pandora Stock Soars Amid Takeover Rumors

RAPAPORT… Shares in Pandora spiked late last week following
speculation the company had hired an adviser to negotiate a possible buyout.



The jeweler has called on Rothschild
for guidance on how to handle potential buyers, according to a Danish-language
report on news site Inside Business. Its stock price rose 7% on Thursday and a
further 9% Friday.

“As a general principle, we do not comment on rumors,” Pandora spokesperson Johan Melchior told Rapaport News Monday. “We [also]
don’t comment on our choice of advisers.”


If there were a bid on Pandora, the company would follow the
rules and regulations on how listed companies need to disclose this information
to the stock exchange, Melchior added.


Pandora has had a difficult time recently, with grey-market
competition in China affecting its bottom line, as well as disappointing sales
leading to the resignation of its CEO in August. It laid off nearly 400
employees in August. Last week, the company launched its first new charm concept in five
years.


Image: Pandora store, Miami, Florida. (Phillip Pessar)