Life after Sorrell sees WPP seek buyer for £3bn Kantar

WPP’s post-Sorrell clearout kicks off in earnest this week.

The advertising giant has brought in bankers from Goldman Sachs to find a buyer for Kantar, its market research firm.

The sale is a key plank of chief executive Mark Read’s turnaround plan to simplify the business that he inherited last year from founder Sir Martin Sorrell.

First-round bids for Kantar are due in the coming days, with WPP hoping to complete a deal by the end of June.

Analysts at Deutsche Bank said in a research note they expect the deal to value Kantar at £3.1billion and they assume WPP will retain a 33 per cent stake in the business.

Market sources say a sale to a large private equity firm is the most likely outcome.

However, a report in the Financial Times on Friday suggested a host of big names have already pulled their interest amid concerns over the price and sustainability of the business.

Blackstone, Carlyle and Advent International were all ruled out of the race.

Other names in the frame include CVC, Permira, Apollo, Carlyle, Apax and Bain.

IT WAS the biggest ever debut for a hedge fund when ExodusPoint Capital Management was launched last year with an $8billion (£6billion) war chest.

The New York-based firm, set up by former colleagues at hedge fund Millennium, opened its first short position in Europe last month with a bet against French electrical equipment maker Rexel. Now, it has set its sights on a UK target: Royal Mail. ExodusPoint has taken out a 0.5 per cent ‘short’ worth £13million in the postal service, say observers at data firm Breakout Point. Royal Mail shares have halved in a year. Will more pain mean a cheque in the post for ExodusPoint?