| Endemol may be listed on Amsterdam bourse |
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AMSTERDAM: Dutch production firm Endemol, which is behind the TV series "Big Brother" and "Fear Factor", is gaining stock market listing in Amsterdam this month. The company will be valued at around 1.1 billion to 1.6 billion euros.
Endemol's parent company, Spanish telecoms group Telefonica, said an application has been made to the Amsterdam bourse to list 125 million Endemol ordinary shares at an offer price of 8.80-12.80 euros per share. Telefonica's chairman Cesar Alierta is selling a minority stake to raise funds for acquisitions five years after his company bought Endemol for about 5 billion euros in shares, almost three times what it may fetch now.
This will be the second IPO for Endemol in less than 10 years. It first sold stock to the public in October 1996, two years after producers Joop van den Ende and John de Mol formed the company, which was later sold to Telefonica.
Endemol said in a statement that it had opened the subscription period to institutional investors on Thursday. The process is expected to end around 21 November. Telefonica will continue to maintain control -- indirectly -- after the listing. The company will follow a book building process.
Endemol chief executive Joaquim Bonfills said the listing is expected to increase the visibility of the company's business and enhance the ability to align management objectives with company strategy. The company has separated its French business from the rest of the company. It will not be part of the listed group.
Endemol had reportedly been approached by media companies including Time Warner Inc. for takeover but had spurned the moves. It has some 3,300 full-time staff on its rolls. With head office in Netherlands, it also operates subsidiaries and joint-ventures in 22 countries around the world. The company had posted earnings of 132.4 million euros last year, excluding the French business.
Posted
on : Sat, 12 Nov 2005 01:35 GMT | Investments News
By : Paula Jenkins
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