UPDATE 2-Mexico's Alfa to propose Axtel spinoff at shareholders meeting, shares up

(Adds analyst quote)

MEXICO CITY, June 27 (Reuters) - Mexican conglomerate Alfa will hold an extraordinary shareholders meeting on July 12 to propose a spinoff of its telecommunications unit Axtel, the company said in a statement on Monday.

Shares in Axtel jumped 7.5% after Monday's market open following the announcement.

Alfa, one of the country's largest conglomerates across food packing and telecommunications, plans to transfer its entire Axtel holding into a new company and list it on the Mexican stock exchange, the statement said.

The company first touted plans to sell Axtel in October 2020, confirming it was still looking for buyers in April this year.

"This decision provides us with an opportunity to continue to capitalize on our strengths and focus on our strategic agenda," Axtel CEO Armando de la Peaa said in the statement.

Marissa Garza, an analyst at Banorte, said the news was a positive move, and expected the transaction to be completed towards the end of this year.

The decision was part of a strategy to confer greater value to shareholders, she said.

"Although Alfa's strategy was aimed at selling its stake in Axtel, this is an independent step, seeking to maintain the commitment to continue optimizing the businesses." (Reporting by Raul Cortes Fernandez and Valentine Hilaire; Additional reporting by Isabel Woodford; Editing by Mark Porter and Bernadette Baum)