Bill Ackman of Pershing Square Holdings, one of Universal Music Group’s (UMG) largest shareholders, has slashed his target price for the initial public offering of his new U.S. closed-end fund.
Ackman has received a lot of media attention. Pershing Square Capital Management (PSCM) – Exclusive Investment Manager for Pershing Square Holdings – Sold 10% Sold stake to investment fund group in June $1.05 billionEvaluating PSCM $10.5 billion.
According to reports, Ackman’s net worth has increased slightly. 4 billion dollars.
This has also sparked a new conversation about: Pershing Square USAAckman’s new closed-end fund is planning to list on the New York Stock Exchange (his existing fund, PSH, trades on the Amsterdam Stock Exchange, as does UMG itself).
According to Bloomberg News,Ackman targeted the IPO price. 25 billion dollars For Pershing Square USA, it would have been the highest-priced closed-end fund ever to go public.
report suggested The price may have had something to do with social media influence. Ackman It increased last year. Ackman became a celebrity on X (formerly Twitter), posting denouncing what he sees as an increase in anti-Semitic sentiment in American politics following Hamas’ attack on Israel on October 7.
But today (July 30th) Pershing Square USA Limited Confirmed The company said it has filed an update with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Indicates the total scale of the company’s offerings $2 billion — Not even a tenth of them As initially expected 25 billion dollars price.
The Company expects to make the following total proposals: 40 million Priced stock 50 dollars According to the documents submitted today, each.
bloomberg rThis report The IPO price is expected to be set on August 5, after the NYSE closes, and trading in the stock is expected to begin the following day (August 6).
The significant reduction in expectations surrounding the fund raises some questions about its capital size. Pershing Square USA It will provide funding for investments, including potential investments in the music industry.
In last month’s analysis, Mbio ~ suggested 25 billion dollars A fund run by Ackman could be good news for the music industry, and UMG in particular, as Ackman has been a champion of both the music industry and UMG, arguing that music is cheap and UMG is one of the best bets in the industry.
In the letter Activate the market Commenting on the reduced IPO size issued last Wednesday (July 25), Ackman said: Pershing Square “It was reshaped [its] After several meetings with potential investors in the capital markets space, he said he was “thinking about a deal.”
“In short, there is tremendous sensitivity to the size of the deal, especially given the novelty of the structure and the very negative trading history of closed-end funds, and it would require a significant leap of faith and ultimately careful analysis and judgment for investors to recognize that this closed-end company would trade at a premium post-IPO. Few companies in history have done so,” Ackman wrote.
“that much 25 billion dollars The numbers in the media initially made investors think the deal was too big. Ultimately, I expect this ‘fixing’ will help the bottom line.”
Ackman added in the letter: “We have committed to limiting supply relative to potential demand. [Pershing Square USA] The stock is trading well in the aftermarket, with the company announcing a $10 billion hard cap.”
Even at the new price point, Pershing Square USA’s IPO would be one of the biggest this year. The New York Times Reported.
“When the $25 billion number first came out in the media, investors thought the deal was too big. Ultimately, we expect this ‘lock-in’ will help the bottom line.”
Bill Ackman, Pershing Square
According to last count, Ackman’s Pershing Square Holdings (a European-based fund) is part of 10.25% Becoming the third largest shareholder of UMG Tencent-Leading Consortium Concerto Partner (Roughly 20%) and previous Vivendi president Vincent Bollore (18%).
UMG is a key part of the PSH portfolio. 24.9% According to the fund’s most recent net assets: Annual Report.
Ackman’s portfolio took a hit last week, as UMG’s stock plunged by double digits after its second-quarter earnings report, which was strong overall but included a sharper-than-expected slowdown in paid streaming subscription revenue and a decline in ad-supported subscription revenue.Music Business Worldwide
