Video game studio acquisitions and buyouts are happening all the time. Xbox is set to acquire Activision Blizzard for nearly $70 billion, the largest deal of its kind. Meanwhile, Sony is scooping up Bungie for $3.6 billion. With deals like those happening, you might think a company like Ubisoft would be ripe for a similar acquisition, but its situation is a bit more complicated.
Rather than be sold to a larger gaming entity, Ubisoft was reportedly drawing buyout interest from several private equity firms. No official propositions were made, but the desire for firms Blackstone Inc. and KKR & Co. to purchase the company was there. Roughly a month later, Ubisoft stock rose as the Guillemot family (that of CEO Yves Guillemot) reportedly looked to keep control of the company. Whether it’s a private firm or the Guillemots acquiring more shares, the process still requires current shareholders to sell their stock. That’s where this new wrinkle comes in.
Stock site Seeking Alpha (via GI.biz) reports that shareholders are holding out for a better price. As of the time of this writing, shares are valued at €48.4. Despite the brief rise around the Guillemot family mentioned earlier, this value has been steadily declining throughout 2022. Reportedly, €60 to €70 is the ideal selling price for shareholders, though €100 has also been suggested. Mathematically, that would require shares to more than double in value.
Ubisoft does have a number of projects on the horizon that could increase its share price. Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora, Skull & Bones, and Mario + Rabbids: Sparks of Hope recently got narrower release windows — they’ll all be arriving between October 1, 2022 and March 31, 2023. Free-to-play Roller Champions is launching this week, and another multiplayer game called Project Q has also been officially announced. Ubisoft also continues to offer its games on other services. Assassin’s Creed Origins is headed to Xbox Game Pass, while Ubisoft+ will be supported through PlayStation Plus.
