Vivendi Spin-off notes

February 15, 2024 Update

Vivendi (VIVHY) announced on December 13, 2023 that it is considering splitting up into 3 publicly traded companies. pay-TV arm Canal+; advertising and communications branch Havas; and a business that includes its majority stake publishing group Lagardère,

The French media conglomerate has traditionally traded at a large conglomerate discount and the breakup would likely unlock significant value. French billionaire Vincent Bollore owns a ~30% stake in Vivendi. UBS estimates a conglomerate discount of 40%. A breakup would make sense as there are limited synergies between the three divisions. Canal+ is the company’s largest unit, accounting for a majority of its sales and earnings. Last year it generated about $6.5BN in revenue and $566MM in EBITDA.

This transaction looks interesting, but I don’t think there is any rush to buy Vivendi as these transactions will probably take several years to play out.