Nielsen board rejects proposal from consortium to acquire company

Nielsen Holdings announced that its Board of Directors has determined not to proceed with an unsolicited acquisition proposal from a private equity consortium that valued the company at $9.13 billion, $25.40 per share. The Board reached this determination based on its comprehensive review of the proposal, with the assistance of its independent financial and legal advisors, and discussions with The WindAcre Partnership LLC under a confidentiality agreement. Nielsen also announced its intention to commence share repurchases under its previously approved $1 billion share repurchase authorization when the company's trading window opens.

Nielsen's Board unanimously determined that “the consortium's offer significantly undervalues the company and does not adequately compensate shareholders for Nielsen's growth prospects”. According to Nielsen's 2021 financial results, the company is achieving strong revenue growth while making significant progress in new product development and MRC reaccreditation. The firm also remains on track to deliver Nielsen ONE, a cross-media solution that will evolve the metrics underpinning the more than $100 billion video advertising ecosystem in 2022. Additionally, following feedback from WindAcre, one of Nielsen's largest shareholders, the Board determined that the transaction would be highly unlikely to receive shareholder approval.

"We continue to have strong confidence in the management team and Nielsen's strategy to create long-term value for shareholders. We are always open to exploring any avenue to create value for shareholders, but the Board is in agreement with WindAcre, one of our largest shareholders, that the consortium's proposal significantly undervalues the company. Further reflecting our confidence in the company, we plan to commence share repurchases, which we expect to be an important element of our ongoing balanced capital allocation strategy,"  said James A. Attwood, Chairperson of the Board.