Following recent movement in the company's share price, the Board of Ascential, owners of the Cannes Lions festival and Money20/20, has confirmed, 23 July, that it has received a conditional proposal from UK events group Informa PLC to acquire the entire share capital of Ascential at 568 pence per share – approximately £1.2bn (US$1.5bn) and a premium of roughly 53% to the closing price on Monday 21 July. The company is being valued to reflect 17x 2023 earnings.
A statement from Ascential said the Informa proposal follows a number of approaches by the group to Ascential in recent months.
The Ascential Board said it was engaged in advanced discussions with Informa and was minded to recommend the proposal.
Informa is required, by not later than 5pm. (London time) on 20 August 2024 to either announce a firm intention to make an offer for Ascential or announce that it does not intend to make an offer.
The proposed acquisition price reflects the strong rebound in in-person conference and events business post-Covid.
Informa is yet to comment officially on the Ascential statement.
Ascential employs about 700 people and had a market capitalisation of £749m as of 23 July.
Informa is capitalised at around £11.3bn and the company has grown steadily since the pandemic. Under group CEO Stephen Carter (pictured), Informa acquired events group Tarsus from Charterhouse Capital Partners for $940m last year.
M&A specialist, MD of Mayfield Merger Strategies, Steve Monnington said: "This is not unexpected and is good news for exhibition M&A. I have speculated for a while about the continuing breakup of Ascential now that their non-events business has all been sold. However, the Ascential management seemed clear that they wouldn't countenance selling Lions and Money20/20 separately, so the move by Informa is logical – they are both great large scale events. The premium of approx 33% to the current market value puts Ascential in a difficult position. They may well reject the offer but an enhanced bid would put them under some pressure."
Update 24 July: The Boards of Informa and Ascential issued statements saying they were pleased to announce that they have reached agreement on the terms of a recommended cash offer for the entire issued and to be issued ordinary share capital of Ascential.
Commenting on the offer, Stephen Carter, chief executive of Informa, said: "Informa is in the business of creating, nurturing and growing world class B2B brands. Lions and Money20/20 are outstanding examples of such brands. Combined, we can expand them into more sectors, accelerate growth and take advantage of new opportunities."
Philip Thomas, chief executive of Ascential, said: "Informa is a highly respected business, famed for its expertise in B2B events, strong, ethical culture and commitment to innovation. This offer will not only deliver substantial value for our shareholders but also, together with Informa's international footprint and extensive capabilities in data and analytics, will unlock further growth opportunities for our brands and our people."
Informa also announced its Half Year results for 2024 on 24 July, delivering underlying operating profit growth of 18.8%, revenue growth of 11% and dividend growth of 10%, thereby increasing full year guidance.
