FRANKFURT (dpa-AFX) - The preference shares of Sartorius shook off their losses on Friday afternoon. Most recently, they gained 1.6 percent to 347.80 euros, placing them among the top DAX stocks. The pharmaceutical and laboratory supplier had previously announced that it intended to pay a dividend of just EUR 0.74 per preference share and EUR 0.73 per ordinary share for 2023. That would be roughly half as much as was paid last year.

One trader pointed to the generally positive sentiment surrounding the biotech sector on the day as the reason for the rise in the share price. Analyst Volker Stoll from LBBW said that the focus at Sartorius was currently on strategic growth and not on the dividend. This was also emphasized by a trader. "The dividend yield at Sartorius is negligible. It hardly matters whether something around 1.50 or 0.74 euros per share is distributed. The share price movement at the moment is probably more related to the capital measures two days ago."

The DAX-listed company sold 200 million euros worth of its own shares in a private placement on Wednesday in order to reduce its debt following the acquisition of cell and gene therapy specialist Polyplus by subsidiary Sartorius Stedim last year./ck/he