(News Bulletin 247) – The media group says it is still working on its plan to split into four entities, alongside a quarterly publication marked by a strong contribution from Lagardère, purchased at the end of 2023.

Vivendi is actively working on its split plan to eliminate its stock market discount. The media group provided a progress update this Monday on this operation, first announced in December 2023.

Vivendi said it was still conducting “a feasibility study” to potentially divide itself into several companies. In detail, Canal+ and Havas would constitute the first two entities. The third would bring together the group’s assets in publishing and distribution, that is to say Lagardère and Prisma Media.

For its part, Vivendi would remain “as such”, listed on the stock exchange, and would retain “its supporting role in the transformation and expansion of its subsidiaries, and would continue “its activity of active management of its investments”.

Reduce the valuation discount

With this split plan, Vivendi recalls wanting to reduce its conglomerate discount on the stock market, that is to say the difference between the book value of the sum of each of its activities and that of its value on the stock market.

The market often values ​​companies specializing in a specific business better than conglomerates with various businesses, for various reasons such as very limited synergies between activities.

Vivendi had calculated this conglomerate discount at 44% at the end of 2023. However, the diversified group estimates to date that this discount “thus limits its ability to carry out external growth operations for its subsidiaries”.

“Canal+, like Havas and Lagardère in particular, are today experiencing strong dynamism, in an international context marked by numerous investment opportunities,” continues Vivendi.

The supervisory board validated this split plan envisaged by the media, video games and communications group at the end of January. From now on, this body must still authorize the continuation of the study of the split project in this direction, recalls Vivendi which adds that this operation must be submitted to a vote of shareholders during the annual general meeting scheduled for April 2025.

The demerger project “still seems particularly value-creating to us and we estimate that it could be finalized by the second quarter of 2025. (…) In this expectation, we do not rule out the opening of the capital of certain subsidiaries intervenes, possibly Canal+ Group”, explained Oddo BHF in March.

A paid absorption of Lagardère

Vivendi provided these details on this split project on the sidelines of the publication of its first quarter activity.

Over the first three months of the year, the group present in the media, video games, communication, publishing and “travel retail” (commerce in train stations and airports) saw its turnover s appreciate by 86.6% to reach 4.275 billion euros.

Remember that the group finalized the acquisition of Lagardère at the end of last year, which mechanically boosted its activity in the first quarter.

Organically, growth is 5.4% compared to the first quarter of 2023, mainly thanks to the performance of Lagardère (+8.9%), Canal+ Group (+2.6%) and Havas (+3.4%). ).

“Canal+ Group, Lagardère and Havas all three posted solid increases in their turnover in the first quarter of 2024 compared to the same period of 2023,” says Vivendi.

For 2024, the group has not given any figures. The company only says it is approaching 2024 with “confidence despite a tense macroeconomic context”.

On the Paris Stock Exchange, Vivendi’s publication leaves the market unmoved. The stock gained 0.1% to 9.858 euros this Monday around 2:30 p.m.