Philips says completes sale of TSMC shares

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The sale of the shares, will give Philips proceeds of about 980 million euros ($1.4 billion), and will result in a non-taxable net gain of about 530 million euros in its fourth quarter results, Philips said.

AMSTERDAM (Reuters) - Philips Electronics <PHG.AS><PHG.N> said on Monday it had completed the sale of 800 million shares in Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company <2330.TW> valued at about $1.5 billion.

The sale of the shares, will give Philips proceeds of about 980 million euros ($1.4 billion), and will result in a non-taxable net gain of about 530 million euros in its fourth quarter results, Philips said.

The sale was carried out as part of a TSMC share repurchase program, which was initiated by TSMC on November 14, and completed on Monday.

Philips still holds about 1.3 billion TSMC shares, representing approximately 5.0 percent of TSMC's issued shares.

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"This total stake is worth approximately 1.7 billion euros at current market prices for TSMC shares," Philips said.

Philips is the world's biggest lighting maker, a top three hospital equipment maker and Europe's biggest consumer electronics producer.

(Reporting by Harro ten Wolde, Editing by Erica Billingham)