Boston, MA 08/29/2014 (wallstreetpr) – Shares of Criteo SA (ADR) (NASDAQ:CRTO) edged up almost 20% in the morning session as news hit the market about a French company willing to restart acquisition talks with Criteo. Investors believe such a transaction would enhance their value.
A French newspaper, Les Echos, said that Publicis, a French-based advertising and PR company, may restart talks with Criteo for a possible acquisition deal. Publicis reportedly started talks to buy Criteo about three months ago, and the latest reports indicate that a deal could be sealed in the coming days, if not weeks. Publicis has been looking for businesses to acquire, especially smaller ones after it abandoned the pursuit of the New York-based Omnicom Group Inc. (NYSE:OMC) this year. The deal with Omnicom Group was valued at $35 billion. With an enterprise value of about 1.2 billion euros ($1.6 billion), Criteo comes as a perfect acquisition fit for Publicis.
Revenue impact
Publicis, like most other advertising agencies, is looking for opportunities in the digital segment where growth opportunities are widespread. Traditional advertisement agency business is failing in many markets because of the weak economies. Publicis particularly noted a negative impact on its revenue because of the softness in Europe and the emerging markets that it serves. However, digital operations are offering hope as the company cited that the digital business accounted for more than 41% of its revenue in the first half of this year, up from 37% in the same period last year.
By acquiring Criteo SA (ADR) (NASDAQ:CRTO), Publicis hopes to not only boost its digital segment, but also see more growth in the segment because of the synergies that Criteo brings. Criteo helps advertisers to target potential customers through its software that sends tailored banner ads to shoppers that may be hesitant to buy online. It had 444 million euros in revenue last year, which was 63% improvement from the same period a year earlier.
New executive in New York
Criteo SA (ADR) (NASDAQ:CRTO) also recently tapped Mary “Mollie” Spilman, as its Chief Revenue Officer. The former Millennial Media executive will lead Criteo’s commercial activities globally but will be based in New York.
