Deals
Hipgnosis shares soar as Blackstone bid raises prospect of bidding war

By Yadarisa Shabong and Prerna Bedi
April 22, 2024 11:04 AM EDT • Updated 3 hours ago

April 22 (Reuters) - Shares of Hipgnosis Songs Fund, opens new tab soared as much as 20% on Monday after Blackstone, opens new tab proposed to buy the owner of music rights by artists including Shakira and Blondie for about $1.5 billion, outbidding Apollo-backed Concord. ... Blackstone's fourth and latest proposal over the weekend valued Hipgnosis at $1.24 per share in cash, above last week's agreed bid from Concord of $1.16 a share.

Hipgnosis shares were trading nearly 12% higher at 1.02 pounds ($1.26) by 1349 GMT, above Blackstone's proposed price, suggesting that investors were expecting the proposal will trigger a bidding war for the London-listed firm. ... The music rights investment firm said it would endorse Blackstone bid if the world's largest private equity firm were to table a formal offer.

A Blackstone deal would see more than 65,000 songs including tracks by Red Hot Chili Peppers and Neil Young, added to Blackstone's portfolio, which includes songs by Justin Bieber and Justin Timberlake. ... Hipgnosis Songs Fund, founded by industry veteran and former CEO Merck Mercuriadis, launched a strategic review last year after a shareholder vote against the continuation of the fund led to a board overhaul, a portfolio revaluation, and a dispute with its investment adviser over a call option.

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Reporting by Prerna Bedi and Yadarisa Shabong in Bengaluru; Editing by Sherry Jacob-Phillips and Tomasz Janowski

Top 20 album covers by celebrated design group Hipgnosis

This Best Of list for Hipgnosis' album cover art strives for a sense of variety, but also takes into account cultural impact and success of the album.

Martin Popoff • Jun 28, 2023

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