Ferragamo family holding to sell 3.5 percent in Italian luxury group

MILAN (Reuters) - Italy's Ferragamo family, which controls the eponymous luxury group, said on Tuesday it would sell a 3.5 percent stake in the company through an accelerated book building (ABB).

The Florence-based group issued a profit warning in December and has been battling falling sales and profitability, partly due to a clean-up of inventories.

The Ferragamos have repeatedly ruled out a sale of the company. Through its holding Ferragamo Finanziaria, the family owns 57.76 percent of the firm, but in total family members control a stake of nearly 70 percent.

Goldman Sachs (GS.N) was the sole book-runner in the ABB operation, which is aimed at institutional investors, the statement said.

The sale aims to increase the free float of the company, which is considered too low by the family, a source told Reuters.

(Reporting by Giulia Segreti, additional reporting by Danilo Masoni; Editing by Crispian Balmer)