UNVGY - Compagnie De L'Odet: A Nebula In The Bolloré Galaxy

2024-07-29 11:10:00 ET

Summary

• Compagnie de L'Odet (Odet), the ultimate holding company, owns 69% of Bolloré, but is itself 35% owned by Bollore.
• The fortunes of Odet and Bolloré are driven far more by the share price of Universal Music Group,  the option value inherent in holding over €6billion of cash, and the ~€3bn value of Bolloré's 30% shareholding in Vivendi.
• The existence of a "nebula" in the galaxy is most surprising because this "cloud" resides in the most transparent part of the group - the relationship between Odet and Bolloré.
• We have a holding company trading at a 20% discount to an intermediate holding company with effectively three investments, which itself trades at a 65% discount to real NAV.
• We value Odet at over €4,700/share on the current asset base - 260% above the prevailing market price.

The following segment was excerpted from this fund letter.

In the June quarter, and for much of the past year, our largest position in the portfolio - approximating 13% at 30 June 2024 - has been "long Bolloré" ( BOIVF ). Not just the company itself, but four separate and distinct positions within the 14 company "galaxy", each having their own specific thesis, whilst obviously sharing common oversight (except Universal Music Group). They range from the ultimate holding company - Compagnie de L'Odet ( FCODF, Odet ) - which owns 69% of Bolloré, but which is itself 35% owned by Bolloré, down to the most remote part of the galaxy, Lagardère ( LGDDF ), which is 63% owned by Vivendi ( VIVHY ) (held), itself owned 30% by Bolloré. Hence, Odet has an effective ownership of 66% x 30% x 63% or ~12.5% of Lagardère....

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