M&C Saatchi Share Price (SAA)

Encouraging to see that Nick Shott has bought just over £50k of shares even if it’s probably loose change for him.

He’s the investment banker who was appointed to the Board at the same time as Vin and has the experience to take the lead on a sale or a break up.

Link to Richard Staveley’s presentation here: https://youtu.be/ZCvgV83Wz6E?

Lots happening here following Brave Bison’s cheeky £50m unsolicited bid for the Performance division being rebuffed.

In March it was announced that the CEO was booted and Vin Murria (the largest shareholder) was rejoining the Board alongside Nick Shott an investment banker.

Vin’s stake is a legacy from when she tried to acquire SAA in 2022. I understand her primary interest being in the Consulting division. The bid was a mixed cash and share bid and Nex 15 offered 247p per share - all rejected. She declared she would not be bidding again in the March RNS but that has a 6 month expiration date.

Harwood have increased their stake from 5 to 6%. Richard Staveley the Investment Manager of their Rockwood fund said he’d had multiple conversations with other major shareholders and believed the World Services division was worth the market cap on its own.

In his slide deck he categorised SAA in the final realisation stage in terms of the pipeline of investments and in the public Q&A in answer to my written question about Vin joining the Board he wrote: “We expect the Board to now focus on selling the different business units. So a break up realising the cumulative sum of the parts. There is no panic or rush, the company has net cash. So this can be done in a measured way!”

"Saatchi"

In addition th potntial that's aleady being enacted here, they are also invested in Saarchi......which is equally proactive and on the up under a new management team. BOGOF! Watch this space.