LONDON, June 17, 2026, 13:04 BST
- 3i was trading at 2,319p, down 0.17%. The stock picked up 1.66% on Tuesday.
- The stock still trades far below estimated net asset value. Investors are watching Action’s sales trend.
- Buybacks and the new dividend are helping support the shares. July’s Q1 update is the next test.
3i Group shares fell in London on Wednesday, backing off after Tuesday’s rally. Action, the Dutch discount retailer, continues to account for most of the private-equity firm’s value and stays in focus for investors.
3i shares traded at 2,319p on the company’s investor page, off 4p, or 0.17%. The stock rose 1.66% to £23.23 on Tuesday, beating the FTSE 100’s 0.61% move.
UK blue chips slipped ahead of the Bank of England rate call. The FTSE 100 lost 0.14% to 10,479.77 by 0936 GMT, after inflation in the UK stayed at 2.8%, Reuters reported. Nick Saunders, CEO of Webull UK, called it “a dilemma” for investors as firm data can fuel rate bets. Reuters
3i faces a near-term valuation question, according to AJ Bell data. The shares are at an estimated net asset value of 3,046.90p and trade at a 24.22% discount. NAV comes from investments and other assets minus liabilities, and a discount shows the stock is below that figure. The stock will go ex-dividend on June 18 for a 48p payout—anyone buying after that date misses the dividend.
The discount has stayed wide since May, when results pointed to how much depends on Action. 3i reported that as of May 10, year-to-date like-for-like sales growth at Action had dropped to 2.4%, down from 6.8% last year, with no growth in France or Germany. CEO Simon Borrows still called Action a “consumer favourite across Europe” but said the “market environment remains complex.” 3i
3i’s buyback activity is offering some support for the stock. The group said in its latest update that it bought 2.04 million shares for cancellation, spending £44.7 million from June 8-12. Total shares bought under the programme now stand at 7.88 million with £174.2 million spent. Buybacks cut the share count when cancelled.
The private-capital names didn’t move together. ICG dropped 0.71% on Wednesday, giving up some of Tuesday’s 1.28% gain. Bridgepoint stayed around 254p during the session, trading between 252.8p and 257p. 3i’s action looks more linked to Action than to the sector as a whole.
The sticking point remains Action’s valuation. 3i said every 1.0-times shift in Action’s post-discount multiple — that’s the ratio of business value to earnings — would move the value of 3i’s Action stake up or down by £1.5 billion. That’s a big move for a FTSE 100 firm.
3i is set to report Q1 numbers on July 23, according to its calendar. Investors will watch for signs that traffic in France and Germany is picking up. They will also see if the buyback is having a bigger effect than just propping up the shares.
