Axalta Coating's Stock Jumps After Berkshire Hathaway Takes Stake

Shares of Axalta Coating Systems surged 5.9% in premarket trade Tuesday, after the company said it reached agreement with The Carlyle Group to sell 20 million shares of Axalta's stock to Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway for $560 million. The per-share price of $28 is 1.2% below Monday's closing price of $28.33. The coatings company will not receive any proceeds from the sale. Carlyle Group is Axalta's largest shareholder, with 170.3 million shares, or 74.1% of Axalta's shares outstanding, as of March 18, according to FactSet. "We are pleased to have Berkshire Hathaway Inc. take this share ownership position in Axalta," said Axalta Chief Executive Charlie Shaver. "Berkshire is the type of quality investor that Axalta has been fortunate to attract since our IPO last year." Axalta's stock has rallied 8.9% year to date, while the S&P 500 has gained 1.1%.