ITV plc shares plunged more than 12% this week after its largest shareholder, Liberty Global, executed a surprise sale of 193.4 million shares in the UK broadcaster, cutting its ownership by half in a transaction worth approximately £135 million. The move, announced on October 22, reduces Liberty Global’s stake from around 10% to just over 5%, marking a significant shift in the shareholder structure of one of the UK’s most prominent media companies.
The share sale was conducted via an accelerated bookbuild offering, handled by joint bookrunners BNP Paribas and Deutsche Numis. The transaction was priced at approximately 70 pence per share, based on the total amount raised and the number of shares sold. Although the specific pricing per share was not publicly disclosed, the scale and timing of the divestment led to immediate market reaction. ITV’s shares fell as much as 12.3% following the announcement, wiping out a substantial portion of its market capitalisation in a single trading session.
The sale also reshuffled ITV’s shareholder hierarchy. Investment firm Redwheel, formerly known as RWC Partners, is now the broadcaster’s largest shareholder with a 6% stake, according to data from LSEG. Liberty Global, while retaining a 5% holding, agreed to a 60-day lock-up period during which it cannot sell additional ITV shares, offering some temporary relief to market concerns about further divestments.
Liberty Global has characterised the transaction as part of a broader portfolio strategy. In its Q1 2025 earnings report, the company stated it was "disposing of certain assets while prioritising our scale-based investments." In a follow-up comment regarding the ITV transaction, a Liberty Global spokesperson said: “As part of that process, we are divesting part of our stake in ITV.” The sale is understood to be a financial decision rather than a reflection of ITV’s operational performance.
Nevertheless, the timing of the move is notable. ITV is navigating a challenging media environment marked by declining linear television viewership, soft advertising demand, and intensifying competition from global streaming platforms. Earlier this year, the company reported a 7% decline in total advertising revenue for the first half of 2025, a modest beat against analyst expectations of an 8% drop. Despite this, investor confidence in the broadcaster’s long-term strategy, which includes scaling its ITVX streaming platform and expanding production through ITV Studios, remains under scrutiny.
The broadcaster’s continued investment in digital transformation and original content production has yet to fully offset structural declines in traditional revenue streams. As such, Liberty Global’s decision to cash in half of its position, even while remaining a top shareholder, is being interpreted by analysts as a sign of cautious optimism — or simply caution.
ITV has not yet issued a statement in response to the share sale. Analysts will be watching closely for any forward-looking commentary when the company releases its next earnings report. Until then, the market reaction underscores the fragility of investor sentiment toward legacy broadcasters attempting to transition in a volatile media landscape.
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