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A consortium of private equity firms plans to make a formal bid for Dutch media and information conglomerate VNU, offering around $34 per share, writes BtoB.
The consortium offered $8.9 billion for VNU, which runs the Nielsen television ratings service and many business-to-business magazines when VNU went into play after it failed to acquire the health care research company IMS for $7 billion in January.
The consortium’s offer disappointed analysts, and VPN shareholders are prepared to reject the offer, reportedly choosing to break up the company instead.
The firms involved in the bid include U.S. companies Blackstone Group, Carlyle Group, Hellman & Friedman, Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. and Thomas H. Lee Partners; the U.K. company Permira Advisers Ltd.; and Alpinvest Partners, from the Netherlands.
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