An Undercover Media Conglomerate And 6.5% Yielder With Catalysts

Vivendi (VIVHY.PK), while not a household name in the United States (and as I have pounded the table for many times), continues to trade at very low multiples of earnings, cash flow and book value. If US investors aren't getting excited about the value Vivendi brings to the table, corporate buyers appear to be interested in Vivendi's assets. Today, it was revealed that Vivendi rejected an $8.5 billion bid for its Universal Music Group business, which represents a higher price relative to my admittedly crude, back of the envelope valuation I wrote about here. The "unsponsored" ADR shares were up over 2.5% today on the news. Yesterday, it was revealed that Vincent Bollore, who is considered by some to be one of the best managers and allocators of capital in the world, increased his stake in Vivendi. Through his investment holding company Groupe Bollore (BOIVF.PK),... Read more