History
In 1944, when Lars Erik Lundberg was only 24, he formed the company that was later to become Lundbergs in his apartment in Norrköping. This company engaged in construction operations and focused on residential building. From an early stage, Lars Erik aimed to master the entire building process from land acquisition to finished product, a full-service construction business.
Geographically, business activities were established in many locations throughout central and southern Sweden in the 1950s and 1960s. During the same period, the construction operations also expanded to include office buildings and department stores.
At an early stage, Lars Erik Lundberg started to show an interest in investing in proprietary properties, having understood the value represented by expansion into an additional business sector, real estate management. This move created greater stability in the Company, which could gradually reduce its dependence on construction operations. It is this foundation upon which Fastighets AB L E Lundberg’s property operations rest today. Since the end of the 1950s, the property holdings have grown successively, and now consist almost entirely of proprietary properties. Apart from residential properties, the holdings also include commercial properties for retail activities and offices.
At the end of the 1970s, Lundbergs began to consider a further expansion of the Group’s operations and, during the 1980s, a series of investments were made within new industries. Finance companies were acquired and developed, as were several smaller industrial companies. Investments were also made in certain publicly listed companies, which gradually resulted in several major shareholdings in such companies as Incentive, Holmens Bruk, Alfa Laval, Siab and Östgöta Enskilda Bank.
The Group’s operations became increasingly diversified and, during the second half of the 1980s, it was decided that investments outside the core area of construction and real estate operations would be concentrated in a limited number of publicly listed companies. Other operations were divested and, in the early 1990s, major shareholdings in Alfa Laval and Incentive were sold to Tetra Pak and ASEA, respectively. These structural transactions meant that significant capital was released, thus strengthening the capital base considerably.
From a wholly owned family company to stock market listing
In 1983, the shares in Lundbergs, with Fredrik Lundberg as President, were listed on the Stockholm Stock Exchange. From its original status as a wholly owned family company, the step was now fully taken into the glare of the public eye. However, the Lundberg family retained a clear majority holding in the Company.
At the beginning of the 1990s, Sweden was afflicted by what was commonly called the finance crisis. As the principal owner of Östgöta Enskilda Bank, Lundbergs was hit heavily by this crisis. However, the bank was saved as a result of very substantial capital investments from Lundbergs. In 1997, the Östgöta Enskilda Bank was sold to Danske Bank at a healthy gain.
In 1994, the construction operations were transferred to the associated company Siab, which merged with NCC in 1997. During the 1990s and to date in the 2000s, substantial investments have been made and Lundbergs has become the principal owner of Holmen and Hufvudstaden. Lundbergs was also the principal owner of Cardo from 1998 until that holding was divested in March 2011. In the same year, shares are acquired in Skanska, which becomes a new portfolio company.
In 2013 Lundbergs becomes the principal owner of Indutrade and since 2015 the principal owner of Industrivärden. In the asset portfolio is, the wholly owned property company Fastighets AB L E Lundberg, the subsidiaries Holmen and Hufvudstaden , as well as the associated companies Husqvarna, Industrivärden and Indutrade. Lundbergs also has significant shareholdings in Alleima, Handelsbanken, Sandvik and Skanska.
Consequently, during 80 years, Lundbergs has developed from a construction company to an investment company with interests in various fields.
