Hipgnosis agrees $465m catalogue sale from public trust to private Blackstone vehicle
The purchase price of the sale of catalogues to Hipgnosis Songs Capital realises a total return of 44%.
Both the publicly-listed vehicle (SONG) and the private $1bn Blackstone vehicle (Hipgnosis Songs Capital) are advised by the Merck Mercuriadis-run Hipgnosis Song Management.
In a stock exchange notice today (14 September), the board outlined several proposals it believes will act as a catalyst for re-rating the £1.1bn trust's share price.
These include catalogue sales for aggregate gross consideration of $465m, a share buyback programme of up to $180m, the repayment of $250m drawn under the trust's revolving credit facility and the introduction of additional, lower investment advisory fee tiers.
The move comes more than two months after the board first revealed it had been considering strategic options to narrow its deep discount to net asset value, after a number of top shareholders called for the disposal of non-core assets to demonstrate portfolio value.
Hipgnosis Songs considers strategic options ahead of September continuation vote
The board had been facing additional pressure in the last week to deliver a compelling offer to shareholders before its five-year continuation vote, after Round Hill Music Royalty fund (RHM), its closest peer, announced it had agreed to a $468.8m takeover offer by Concord on Friday (8 September).
Hipgnosis Songs Capital, the buyer of the ‘first disposal portfolio', or 29 music catalogues, is a partnership between Hipgnosis Song Management and funds managed or advised by Blackstone.
Blackstone owns a majority stake in SONG's management company Hipgnosis Songs Management and also runs the Hipgnosis Songs Capital fund, which holds £1bn of the private equity giant's money.
Under the
Read more on investmentweek.co.uk
