KKR & Co reportedly getting bids from Lion Capital and Shandong Ruyi for SMCP

KKR & Co, the owner of French fashion brands Sandro, Maje and Claudie Pierlot, has reportedly attracted bids from Lion Capital and Chinese textile producer Shandong Ruyi Group.

Sources close to the matter that asked to remain anonymous given the private nature of these conversations, pointed out that the clothing group could be valued at more than 1 billion dollars in the sale.

It is worth of recalling that KKR bought control of SMCP in 2013, hiring banks last year to consider strategic options including a sale of its stake, according to the people, reports Bloomberg.

Two billion deal or potential floatation, options considered by KKR for SMCP

Deal valued In October, SMCP was put on the market in a deal expected to happen this year that could value it at more than one billion euros, sources close to the matter said back then.

In fact, private equity firm KKR (KKR.N), the controlling shareholder, hired Bank of America Merrill Lynch and UBS to review options that could include a flotation on the Paris stock market in 2016, they said.

SMCP, which has more than 1,000 stores in 34 countries, is adding shops in Hong Kong and seeking opportunities to expand in mainland China, Chief Executive Officer Daniel Lalonde said in an interview last year. It added 12 new outlets in Asia in the first half of 2015, its website shows.

The company’s sales for the first half of 2015 rose 32 percent to 316 million euros (344 million dollars), according to a statement. Representatives for KKR, Lion Capital and Shandong Ruyi Group declined to comment.

Earlier this week, KKR & Co. L.P. (NYSE:KKR) had its price target lowered by Deutsche Bank from 16.00 to 15.00 dollars in a research report released on Tuesday morning, The brokerage currently has a ‘hold’ rating on the stock. The company has a 50-day moving average price of 15.2 dollars and a 200-day moving average price of 18.72 dollars. The firm has a market cap of 6.02 billion dollars.