Canal+ IPO debuts in London: a look at the London Stock Exchange competitiveness

CGTN Europe

CGTN Europe speaks to Susannah Streeter, Head of Money and Markets at Hargreaves Lansdown.

Transcript

00:00Well, the UK government is framing the Canal Plus listing as a vote of confidence in the London Stock Exchange,

00:05which has seen its largest exodus this year since the financial crisis of 2008.

00:10London has attracted just 18 new listings in 2024,

00:15the most notable being computer firm Raspberry Pi and sports health brand Applied Nutrition.

00:20Susanna Streeter is Head of Money and Markets at Hargreaves Lansdowne.

00:24Great to have you on the show again, Susanna.

00:26Let's start with the float itself.

00:28Why did Vivendi, the conglomerate with roots in 19th century France, spin off Canal Plus?

00:34Well, it was considered to be worth more than the sum of its parts as a conglomerate

00:41if all of these different businesses were hived off,

00:44which is why you've seen Havas, the advertising arm, listing as well today,

00:49as well as Hachette, the publishing arm, and Canal Plus.

00:53And Canal Plus really has changed from being a business that really served French subscribers

00:59to tripling its subscriber base all over the world.

01:02And the company really wanted to capitalize on that, this huge growth in subscriber numbers

01:08and also the success of a number of its hits, most recently the Paddington movie,

01:14but also a series like Versailles, for example.

01:18It's become much more of a global name, Canal Plus.

01:21And so it wanted to list to try and attract, invest interest from around the world.

01:27This was the biggest IPO of 2024 for the London Stock Exchange,

01:31but those shares dropped quite a bit, which values the company smaller than British TV rival, ITV,

01:36despite having annual revenues about a third larger.

01:39So why do you think trading in Canal Plus might be a little bit bumpy to start with?

01:46Well, often you do get this kind of volatility when you have an IPO in the hours, days,

01:51and even weeks after a company has listed.

01:55And certainly you're seeing that playing out.

01:57It was a bit of a disappointing debut.

02:00It wasn't a blockbuster open that perhaps the company would have liked to see,

02:04but also wasn't totally unexpected because some of those investors who did hold Vivendi shares,

02:13they may have been forced to sell because they may not have been able to retain those Canal Plus shares

02:21because they have to list in the French market.

02:24It could be that some of the bigger investment firms who hold those shares,

02:30that may have caused them to sell them, and then that has led to this drop that we've seen.

02:37For example, funds that track the French stock market, for example.

02:42But perhaps the fall was a little bit greater than expected.

02:46But as I say, there is often volatility following an IPO until there is the true price reached.

02:55But that may not be known for a few days or even weeks yet.

03:02But it's way off that $6 billion mark that they were hoping for.

03:05That's going to be a company to watch, that's for sure.

03:08But I want to talk about UK listings more generally.

03:11Because as we said, firms are leaving London in their droves.

03:1488 either delisted or transferred their primary listings just this year.

03:18Has London become uncompetitive, Susanna?

03:22I don't think it's become uncompetitive.

03:24It certainly is tough to try and lure firms to list in London when you've got the bright lights of New York.

03:31And certainly with what you've seen with valuation soaring for tech giants in the United States,

03:37it's understandable that some firms want some of that sheen to rub off on their valuations as well.

03:44And so you are seeing some non-tech firms being lured over as well, as well as the likes of Arm, for example,

03:51which of course was a disappointment that it chose to list in New York instead.

03:56But Ashtead is one of the latest, the equipment supplier, rental equipment.

04:01But again, it has the vast majority of its business in the United States, around 98%.

04:06So that, too, can be understandable.

04:09But certainly I think when you had Canal Plusa deciding to list in London,

04:13and one of the reasons being is that it has this kind of global reputation as a global investment hub

04:21and the listing rule changes that we've seen brought in last year

04:26with the combination of the premier and standard segments of the London Stock Exchange.

04:30I think we are starting to see this narrative change.

04:33And particularly with the new government, there is more stability now.

04:36And that should help, certainly with listings in London looking bright at the prospects for 2025.

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