Bill Ackman’s Pershing Square launches bid for Universal Music Group
An investment company helmed by billionaire hedge fund investor Bill Ackman has offered to buy the world’s largest music company in a $63bn bid.
Pershing Square said on Tuesday it plans to form a new US-listed company through a merger with Universal Music Group (UMG), pulling its Amsterdam listing.
The deal would give Universal investors a total of €9.4bn in cash and 0.77 shares in the new company for every share they own.
Shares in UMG jumped for than 11 per cent in early trading, having fallen more than 30 per cent over the past six months as the music industry wrestles with the role of AI.
Ackman praised the performance of Universal and its artists – who include Taylor Swift – but said the firm has “languished” in recent years.
He said: “Since UMG’s listing, Sir Lucian Grainge and the company’s management have done an excellent job nurturing and continuing to build a world-class artist roster and generating strong business performance.
“However, UMG’s stock price has languished due to a combination of issues that are unrelated to the performance of its music business and importantly, all of them can be addressed with this transaction.”
Ackman pushes for New York listing
Ackman has long been pushing for UMG to shift its listing to New York, having said in 2024 that the move would come before the end of last year.
The music group’s lack of a primary Nasdaq listing means it has been trading at a “large discount,” he said at the time.
French media firm Vivendi spun off Universal in 2004, though its owners – the Bollore family – still have a 28 per cent stake in the record label.
Pershing Square holdings took a 10 per cent stake in UMG in 2021, shortly before it floated in Amsterdam with a €46bn (£39.3bn) valuation.
Universal Music Group, the world’s largest record company, is home to artists including Kendrick Lamar, Lady Gaga and Bad Bunny.
Pershing Square Capital Management is New York-listed though Ackman has previously said he intends to float the firm in London.
Pershing Square Holdings, an investment trust run by Ackman’s firm, is listed on the FTSE 100 index.