Sold 750 shares in Maurel et Prom today (Paris, MAU) at €4.13. The shares are up 35% since I bought them in euro terms but 53% in GBP and as a result Maurel et Prom had become the largest holding at £11,1622 or 6.6% of the Contrarian portfolio.

The shares are trading at close to the potential Pertimina bid price of €4.20 (admittedly ignoring the potential €0.50 kicker if the oil price exceeds $65/bbl for more than 90 days next year). With the Chairman and CEO already having sold his 24.5% stake and the board recommending the (potential) offer, there seems limited prospect of flushing out a higher bid. It seems to me this is increasingly becoming a merger-arb play with a “free” option on brent exceeding $65/bbl. And there may be value in that. But not as Contrarian’s biggest holding, so I am selling down a quarter today and may sell further.

Post the sale, Contrarian stands at £168,553 with £10,404 in cash.  Given how overbought parts of the sector are, it is not burning a hole in my pocket either.