Monday, March 06, 2006
Emap: Private Equity Target?
Long-term doubts cloud short-term sale boost for Emap
Emap is exiting its French consumer magazine business, and the (London) Times' Dan Sabbagh offers some analysis (linked above) of what he sees as the company's "limited growth prospects."
Sabbagh focuses on the b2b division, noting: "Further investment here will please investors, although Emap has to compete for assets with the likes of Reed Elsevier, DMGT and United Business Media."
But his conclusion is interesting: "Investors’ best hope is that without France, the company will be an attractive takeover target — with a private equity house perhaps splitting up the business. The thought is compelling, but it is the only reason for buying the shares. On fundamentals don’t expect much."
Given the competition for acquisitions that Sabbagh sees, and the over-hot private equity play for VNU, Emap seems in for some kind of big squeeze. It will be interesting to see how this plays out.
Maybe the company will make another attempt to enter the US market? Perhaps focused solely on b2b? Stranger things have happened.
Comments
|
Emap is exiting its French consumer magazine business, and the (London) Times' Dan Sabbagh offers some analysis (linked above) of what he sees as the company's "limited growth prospects."
Sabbagh focuses on the b2b division, noting: "Further investment here will please investors, although Emap has to compete for assets with the likes of Reed Elsevier, DMGT and United Business Media."
But his conclusion is interesting: "Investors’ best hope is that without France, the company will be an attractive takeover target — with a private equity house perhaps splitting up the business. The thought is compelling, but it is the only reason for buying the shares. On fundamentals don’t expect much."
Given the competition for acquisitions that Sabbagh sees, and the over-hot private equity play for VNU, Emap seems in for some kind of big squeeze. It will be interesting to see how this plays out.
Maybe the company will make another attempt to enter the US market? Perhaps focused solely on b2b? Stranger things have happened.
