Investing.com — has agreed to sell a 4.5% stake in to r for about €270 million, with shares in the German food delivery group rising more than 2% on Friday while Prosus stock traded flat in Amsterdam as investors digested a deal that analysts at Jefferies said left them “baffled.”
The Dutch investment group will sell 13,582,342 shares at €20 each, representing a roughly 22% premium to Delivery Hero’s one-month volume-weighted average price as of April 16. The transaction will generate gross proceeds of about €270 million for Prosus.
The disposal forms part of Prosus’s obligation to significantly reduce its holding in the German-listed food delivery group after the European Commission approved its €4.1 billion takeover of Just Eat Takeaway.com in August 2025, subject to remedies.
Prosus has said it remains committed to cutting its stake to required levels within the agreed timeframe.
But Jefferies analysts questioned the timing and rationale of the move. “We are baffled by Prosus’s actions here,” the brokerage said.
They pointed out that the €20 per share price is likely below Prosus’s average entry level, while the EU remedy deadline does not fall until August 12.
Analysts added that Delivery Hero’s ongoing strategic review could have yielded a better valuation had Prosus waited.
The timing is further complicated by regulatory dynamics. Jefferies noted that Merger Rules in the EU were on the verge of unlocking a path for Prosus to pursue what he described as its long-held ambition, a full takeover of Delivery Hero, making the decision to sell to Uber all the more puzzling.
The deal lifts Uber’s total stake in Delivery Hero to about 7%, having first bought a 3% position in a primary issuance alongside an aborted attempt to acquire Delivery Hero’s foodpanda Taiwan business in May 2024.
Jefferies cautioned against reading the transaction as a stepping stone to an Uber takeover of Delivery Hero, pointing to significant regulatory obstacles.
Uber and Delivery Hero overlap in nine European markets, eight of which fall under EU jurisdiction, a broader overlap than the five-market overlap that had already made Brussels uncomfortable with Prosus owning 27% of Delivery Hero alongside 100% of Just Eat Takeaway. Globally, the two companies compete in food delivery across 22 countries.
“Brussels is beginning to dislike the idea of US companies owning EU tech companies,” Jefferies said added, in a further caution to those betting on an Uber-led consolidation.
Delivery Hero has come under growing pressure from investors over the performance of its global operations, which span around 70 countries and include brands such as Talabat, Glovo and Foodpanda.
Activist investor Aspex Management, which holds roughly 9% of the company, has called for asset sales and a streamlined portfolio, and has warned it could push for leadership changes if progress is not made.
The Financial Times earlier reported that Uber would acquire the shares as part of an “opportunistic” investment.
The move comes as Uber expands its food delivery business into new markets and follows broader North American interest in Europe’s delivery sector, including DoorDash’s acquisition of Deliveroo last year. Neither Uber nor Delivery Hero have commented publicly on the transaction.