Bain Capital is preparing to offload 7.5 million Coherent Corp. shares in a block trade worth up to $1.14bn, marking its second major sell-down in less than a month as the private equity firm continues to reduce its exposure to the photonics group, according to sources cited by Bloomberg.

The shares are being marketed at $144.25 to $151.81 each, representing a discount of as much as 5% to Monday’s closing price. Goldman Sachs is leading the transaction. Bain executed an identical block sale on 7 November worth about $1.1bn.

The latest disposal follows Bain’s decision to waive dividend rights on its Coherent convertible preferred stock, a move disclosed in a recent SEC filing. The waiver aligns its position more closely with common shareholders ahead of further sell-down activity.

Coherent’s shares slipped 0.2% to $151.50 in late New York trading but remain more than 60% higher this year.

Bain first became a backer of the business through II-VI Inc., which rebranded as Coherent Corp. in 2022 after acquiring Coherent Inc. The company supplies photonics technologies including optical transceivers used in AI data centres, as well as industrial lasers and laser systems for manufacturing.

The sell-down reflects Bain’s shift towards supporting services that improve the efficiency of AI data centres, rather than joining the wider buyout-market rush into the ownership of data centre assets.

Representatives for Bain Capital and Goldman Sachs declined to comment. Coherent did not respond to requests for comment.

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