ERIC Ericsson

By Dominic Chopping

STOCKHOLM--Investor AB (INVE-B.SK) Thursday reported a 4% fall in the net asset value of its investment portfolio in the first quarter as the stock-market prices of its listed holdings declined.

The net asset value was 344 Swedish kronor ($42) a share on Mar. 31, a decrease of SEK13 a share from three months earlier.

Investor is the investment vehicle of Sweden's powerful Wallenberg family and owns stakes in some of the country's largest companies, including telecommunications giant Ericsson (ERIC), industrial-equipment maker Atlas Copco AB (ATCO-A.SK) and retail and corporate lender Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB (SEB-A.SK).

Investor said it bought SEK125 million of additional shares in Atlas Copco through the quarter.

Chief Executive Johan Forssell said Investor's financial flexibility remains strong, and it will look for investment opportunities in existing and new companies in future. However, he cautioned on the current wave of negative interest rates in the Nordic region. "I find negative interest rates quite disturbing. In my world, there has to be a cost of capital. If there is not, something is wrong and the consequences could prove costly."

Investor reported a net loss of SEK9.69 billion in the first quarter, compared with a net profit of SEK34.01 billion in the same period the previous year. It expects to receive approximately SEK8.2 billion of dividends in 2016, an increase of about 6% from last year, it said.

Write to Dominic Chopping at dominic.chopping@wsj.com; Twitter: @domchopping @WSJNordics

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

April 21, 2016 06:20 ET (10:20 GMT)

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