China’s Anta Sports has offered to buy the Pinault family’s 29 percent stake in Puma, three sources told Reuters.
Anta made the offer a few weeks ago and has secured financing for the acquisition should a deal go through, two sources said. One source, however, said the situation had stalled.
Artémis, the Pinault family’s holding company, is reportedly seeking bids above €40 per share, a fourth source told Reuters. It is unknown how much Anta’s bid was for.
Puma shares rose €1.92, or 8.6 percent, to €24.37 on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange after the report on Thursday, January 8, hitting their highest level since May 2025.
Bloomberg reported in October 2025 that Anta, the China-based majority owner of Amer Sports, was working with an adviser to evaluate a bid to acquire Puma, including possibly partnering with a private-equity firm to support the deal.
Reports first arrived in August 2025 that Artemis was exploring the sale of its 29 percent stake in Puma, possibly through an outright sale. Artemis is run by Francois-Henri Pinault, chairman of Kering, the fashion conglomerate that counts Gucci among its brands. The Pinault family acquired its Puma stake from Kering when it transformed the conglomerate into a pure luxury player in 2018.
Reports later surfaced that Artemis had no plans to sell its stake, at least not at its current value, and planned to support turnaround efforts being orchestrated by Arthur Hoeld, the former Adidas executive who assumed the CEO role in July. However, reports of potential interested acquirers have continued to reach the press.
Beyond Anta’s interest, Asics was cited as a potential bidder, although the company denied that it was exploring an acquisition of Puma.
Li Ning was also cited as a potential acquirer but denied that it had held any discussions regarding a purchase of Puma.
Authentic Brands, the parent of Reebok, Champion and several other lifestyle brands, as well as German private equity firm CVC Capital Partners, were also reportedly exploring a bid for Puma earlier this year.
A senior source close to Artemis said in September 2025 that the Pinault family would not sell their Puma stake at the then-current market valuation but conceded the stake was “non-strategic.”
Image courtesy Puma
