PARIS, Oct 12 (Reuters) - Areva has begun selling the bulk of its stake in aerospace group Safran to institutional investors, the French nuclear reactor maker said on Monday.
Areva said it would sell up to 3.65 percent of its equity holding in Safran, or about 15.36 million shares, cutting its stake to 1.99 percent.
Safran shares have gained 50 percent so far this year and closed at 20.59 euros on Monday. The stock fell 2.2 percent by 0703 GMT.
Book building will begin immediately and will be managed by HSBC as global coordinator and only book runner.