BlackRock's Evonik Stake Ticks Higher as BASF's €24 Bid Sits in Limbo

BlackRock has nudged its reported aggregate position in Evonik higher, lifting the disclosed total to 5.25% from 5.09% in a filing published today. The move puts the institutional investor's footprint alongside the wider standoff over BASF's takeover interest — though the notification itself is silent on where BlackRock stands on any deal.

The disclosure, which reflects a threshold crossing on Wednesday, is a voluntary group notification triggered at subsidiary level. For investors, the key is separating voting rights held directly from the additional instruments bundled into the total.

Shares and instruments move in opposite directions

Equities account for 4.10% of the voting rights, with a further 1.14% reported through instruments. Those include securities lending with recall rights and cash-settled contracts for difference. The aggregate figure therefore should not be read as a pure shareholding.

The equity component climbed from the prior filing, while the instrument-based portion edged lower. That makes the change something other than a uniform build across every component — and the publication alone offers no proof of a stance favouring a takeover.

Should investors sell immediately? Or is it worth buying Evonik?

BASF's raised offer remains the valuation backdrop

BASF lifted its bid roughly two weeks ago to €24 per Evonik share. Evonik declined on Friday to enter negotiations, reaffirming its plan to keep developing the business independently. A purely informational and confidential exchange remains possible.

According to Börsen-Zeitung, strategic considerations sit behind the refusal. That distinction matters when weighing the BlackRock filing: a larger reported stake does not by itself shift the state of the talks. Informal contact and takeover negotiations are still two different things.

At €20.70, Evonik's share price trades below the stated offer level — a measure of the gap to the bid, not a locked-in payout. The absence of negotiating willingness at Evonik remains a material constraint for anyone betting on a combination.

A stake filing is not a takeover signal

The new notification documents a higher reported aggregate position at BlackRock. It answers neither the strategic objections raised by Evonik's management nor the question of a possible agreement with BASF.

Two developments therefore need to be kept apart: the changed shareholding position and the unchanged resistance to takeover talks. Only an explicitly stated view on the transaction would turn the voting-rights filing into a reliable signal in the takeover conflict. Until then, the stake change stands on its own.

Kamieth keeps the door open — but not at any price

BASF, for its part, spent the day making the strategic case for a combination. No common line is emerging: Evonik is holding firm on independence and rejecting takeover negotiations. For investors, price is not the only question — whether the two companies can develop a shared industrial vision at all is just as decisive.

As Chemical Week reports, BASF remains willing to talk. At the same time, CEO Markus Kamieth stressed that he would not pursue a merger "at any price."

Set against that is Evonik's decision on Friday. After reviewing a BASF letter, the company said it would not open takeover negotiations and would instead execute its own strategy. A confidential exchange of a purely informational nature stays on the table. The distinction is crucial: a willingness to talk here is not a willingness to negotiate a transaction.

Per a Börsen-Zeitung report, Evonik questions the offer on strategic grounds, noting that BASF has yet to give its own shareholders a corresponding explanation. The conflict thus extends beyond financial terms to the rationale for the deal itself.

Evonik at a turning point? This analysis reveals what investors need to know now.

Reported price is not a transaction value

Media reports put BASF's raised offer at €24 per Evonik share, set roughly two weeks ago. At €20.96, the stock sits below that reported level. Neither company has published official offer details, so the figure should not be equated with a secured sale proceeds for shareholders.

A higher price would not automatically clear the remaining hurdles either. Evonik's rejection concerns the opening of takeover negotiations themselves. The information channel that stays open keeps communication alive but does nothing to change that stance.

Timing and operational conditions add further layers. Kamieth said on Wednesday that a completion would be possible in 2028 at the earliest given the necessary approvals. The expected synergies also hinge on Evonik's planned sale of its C4 business.

For Evonik shareholders, two levels therefore need separate assessment: the standalone corporate strategy and the still-unsecured takeover prospect. The next concrete date on the calendar is the quarterly results scheduled for 3 November 2026, which will bring the operating business into focus while no rapprochement on the strategic question has been confirmed.

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