Universal Music Shareholder Bollore Throws Cold Water On Ackman's $65 Billion Bid for Record Label

By Mauro Orru

Universal Music Group shareholder Bollore Group said it was calling on the record label to ditch a $65 billion bid from Bill Ackman's Pershing Square Capital, a move that could derail efforts from the billionaire to seize the world's largest music company.

Cyrille Bollore, chief executive of the Bollore Group, said Ackman's bid undervalued Universal. Pershing Square Capital in April offered 30.40 euros a share in a cash-and-stock deal that values Universal's current stock outstanding at 55.89 billion euros, equivalent to $65.01 billion.

"I don't think that this offer is positive. I don't think it would be positive for the company and I encourage UMG management to reject that offer," Bollore told shareholders at the company's annual general meeting on Wednesday.

Pershing and Universal didn't respond to requests for comment. Universal previously said its board had started reviewing the proposal.

Bollore's remarks poured cold water on Ackman's efforts to land Universal, home to some of the world's most successful artists, including Lady Gaga, Taylor Swift, Billie Eilish and the Beatles.

The family of French billionaire Vincent Bollore commanded a stake of roughly 18.5% and nearly 40% of voting rights in Universal, according to the music company's latest annual report. Universal's other major shareholders include Vivendi and China's Tencent Holdings and any deal would require a two-thirds vote to pass, according to Pershing Square's proposal.

Ackman has long sought to get Universal listed in the U.S., saying its stock price had languished due to what Pershing called uncertainty in relation to Bollore's stake in the company, the underutilization of UMG's balance sheet and the lack of a publicly disclosed capital allocation plan.

Pershing is seeking to merge Universal with Pershing Square Sparc Holdings, a specially-created acquisition vehicle. The new entity would be based in Nevada and would shift its stock listing from Amsterdam to the New York Stock Exchange.

The label has operational headquarters in Santa Monica and corporate headquarters in Hilversum, Netherlands. It started trading on the Euronext Amsterdam in September 2021 after a spinoff from Vivendi.

Universal shares in Amsterdam are down nearly 30% over the past 12 months. Revenue from subscriptions and streaming services boomed during the pandemic when coronavirus restrictions prevented people from attending live concerts. Those services are still resilient, but growth has cooled since pandemic highs.

Last month, the company reported weak revenue and earnings for the first quarter and said it would sell half of its 3.1% equity stake in Spotify Technology and channel funds to buy back shares.

Write to Mauro Orru at mauro.orru@wsj.com

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May 27, 2026 07:45 ET (11:45 GMT)