Founder Bets $161M on Li Ning Recovery

The founder of Chinese sportswear brand Li Ning has been aggressively buying shares this month. Viva China Holdings, the controlling vehicle of founder Li Ning himself, snapped up over $160 million worth of stock across six trades between August 27 and September 3. The buying was disclosed to markets on September 7.

The purchases cover more than 93 million shares. This is a clear vote of confidence from the man who built the brand. Li Ning the company has faced intense competition from domestic rivals and a slowing Chinese consumer backdrop.

Across Hong Kong markets, institutional repositioning also caught the eye. BlackRock cut its stake in Kingdee International Software by $137 million on September 2, with JPMorgan trimming a further $85 million in the same stock on the same day. That is a rare coordinated reduction from two major institutions.

In Europe, activist investor Active Ownership Capital continued adding to its position in German pharma packaging firm Gerresheimer. The firm bought roughly $10.4 million worth of shares across two trades in the first week of September. Active Ownership sits on Gerresheimer's board, making these open-market purchases a strong signal of intent.

Italian cosmetics ingredients maker Intercos saw private equity backer L Catterton sell a $94 million block of shares on September 2, filed September 8. At that scale, this looks like a partial exit by a long-term financial investor rather than a change in business fundamentals.