Nielsen Holdings PLC shares fell 17.6% in premarket trades Monday after the marketing data collection and analytics services company rejected a buyout offer valued at about $9 billion for all its shares. The Wall Street Journal last week reported that Elliott Management Corp. joined private-equity buyers in talks to acquire the company. On Sunday, Nielsen said the price that was offered was $25.40 a share, but the company did not name the buyers. The WindAcre Partnership LLC, which owns 9.6% of Neilsen shares as its largest shareholder, said in a statement it would not support the deal. WindAcre managing partner Snehai Amin said the offer does not come close “to recognizing Nielsen’s intrinsic value.” Nielsen’s board unanimously agreed the deal price “does not adequately compensate shareholders for Nielsen’s growth prospects.” Nielsen said it would begin buying back stock under its previously approved $1 billion share repurchase authorization. As of Friday’s close, Nielsen shares were up 19.2%, compared to a drop of 6.4% by the S&P 500.
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