(Yicai Global) April 23 -- Two-and-a-half years after buying into Yili  Industrial Group, Sunshine Insurance Group has sold 100 shares in the  dairy product giant, and plans to reduce its holding further over the  next 12 months. 

Beijing-based  Sunshine Property and its subsidiary sold 100 unrestricted outstanding  shares, or 0.0000016 percent of Yili Industrial Group's general capital,  through the Shanghai Stock Exchange on April 19, the Hohhot-based  company said in a statement. 

Sunshine's  investment in Yili Industrial Group dates back to the end of 2015 when  it became fifth-largest shareholder with 109 million shares, or 1.8  percent of the total. Its stake rose to 5 percent as of September 2016. 

Yili Industrial Group issued 14.2 million restricted shares targeting those  eligible for equity incentives in February 2017, which diluted Sunshine,  Casualty and Sunshine Life's respective equities to a combined 4.99  percent. 

A shareholder of more than five percent stock in a listed company needs  to disclose in advance equity sales, based on China's laws and  regulations. Disclosing the sale was voluntary as it held less than five  percent but it did not explain why it only cut its holding by 100  shares. 

Shares in Yili Industrial Group [SHA:600887] were 0.87 percent lower at  CNY30.71 (USD4.58) as of 2.00 p.m. today after closing 0.51 percent down  yesterday at CNY30.89. The insurer earned at least CNY4.5 billion in  floating profit by investing Yili Industrial Group based on the average  price of CNY16.1 disclosed by Sunshine Insurance Group in September  2016. 

Editor: William Clegg