Proactive Investors - French television and film group Canal+ is hoping to fetch a valuation of up to £8 billion share when it lists on the London Stock Exchange by the end of the year, which could help spark the start of a comeback for new listings in the City after a deathly quiet few years.
Resulting from the split-up of parent company Vivendi (EPA:VIV), an initial public offer of Canal+ has been mooted since the summer and is likely to be valued at between €6 billion and €8 billion, according to City sources cited by the Telegraph.
The top end would put the company around the middle of the FTSE 100 index and around three times the valuation of FTSE 250-listed ITV (LON:ITV) PLC.
As around two-thirds of Canal+’s subscribers are outside of France, Vivendi previously said a London-based listing would represent "an attractive solution" for international investors.
The French group's shareholders will vote on the break-up plan on December 9, the company announced last week, following a capital markets day for Canal+ on November 18.
Should the "split project" be approved by investors, the first listing of the shares of Canal+ and two other businesses to be separated out, communications firm Havas and Louis Hachette Group, would take place on December 16.
For the London stock exchange, it would provide a much-welcomed boost, with only 10 companies listing in the first nine months of 2024, drumming up a total of £584.6 million, down 47% compared to the same period in 2023, with last year seeing the second-lowest total in three decades.
However, recent months have seen £540 million raised by Raspberry Pi (LON:RPI) and a £400 million float for Applied Nutrition, with a bounce expected at the turn of the year amidst the pipeline of potential newcomers said to be filling again.
If Canal+ reaches the top end of rumoured valuations, it would be the largest IPO in the Square Mile since Haleon (LON:HLN) in 2022.