WPP shares surge on talk of Havas buyout bid

LONDON: WPP’s battered shares sprang to life on Monday as whispers of a takeover bid sent the stock soaring as much as 6.7 per cent in morning trading.

The advertising giant’s shares touched 307.50 pence before settling at 304.20 pence—a gain of 5.5 per cent from Friday’s close of 288.30 pence. The stock opened at 302 pence.

Market chatter suggests Havas, backed by private equity heavyweights KKR and Apollo, is eyeing a move for the London-listed agency network. Neither the suitors nor WPP would comment on the speculation.
The surge offers brief respite for shareholders who have endured months of pain. WPP traded at 879 pence as 2024 drew to a close. Since then, the shares have been in freefall after a string of disappointing results left investors nursing heavy losses.

Whether today’s rally marks a turning point or merely a dead cat bounce depends on whether the rumoured bidders are prepared to put their money where the market’s mouth is.

Updated at 22:10 pm: As the day progressed the WPP scrip had rocketed up to 325.10 pence and then retreated to 319.60  pence – a sharp increase of 10.86 per cent. The stock closed the days trading at  320.10 pence – a jump of 11.03 per cent. Clearly, the share traders  believe there is some truth in all the chatter about the WPP takeover.