A €55 billion acquisition offer for Universal Music Group has been submitted by Pershing Square Capital, the investment firm of billionaire investor Bill Ackman, in a deal that could move the company’s listing from Amsterdam to New York.
The proposal предусматриes the merger of Universal with a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) set up by Bill Ackman.
Under the terms of the deal, Universal shareholders will receive €5.05 in cash per share — totaling approximately €9.4 billion — as well as 0.77 shares in the new company for each share they hold.
Universal’s valuation is estimated at around €55 billion, with the share price set at €30.40, according to Pershing Square, which has held a stake in the company since 2021.
Announcing the proposal, Bill Ackman argued that Universal’s stock has underperformed for reasons unrelated to the company’s fundamentals.
“UMG’s stock has lagged due to factors unrelated to the performance of its music portfolio and, importantly, all of these can be addressed through this transaction,” he said.
Universal is the largest record company in the world, with artists such as Taylor Swift and Kendrick Lamar, and is one of the “big three” in the industry, alongside Sony Music and Warner Music.
The company’s stock has fallen by more than 30% over the past six months, amid concerns that artificial intelligence may put pressure on music industry revenues.
At the same time, Pershing Square notes that Universal’s valuation has been negatively affected by the lack of a clear capital allocation strategy, as well as by the undervaluation of its stake in the streaming platform Spotify.
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