|
 Yahoo, which has been struggling with falling ad revenue for years,
has sped up the process to sell its media, email and other web
businesses, bowing to pressure from activist shareholder Starboard
Value LP and others.
Shares of Yahoo rose as much as 5 percent on Wednesday, as investors
digested the company's slightly better-than-expected quarterly
results late on Tuesday and CEO Marissa Mayer's reassurances that
she was focused on the sale.
Yahoo's advisers are working through offers to put together a short
list, and Verizon Communications Inc was set to advance to the
second stage of bidding for the internet company's core assets,
Reuters reported, citing sources.
Daily Mail & General Trust Plc said last week it was in talks with
potential partners to mount a joint bid for Yahoo's internet assets.
Buying Yahoo's core assets - which include a search engine and
email, news and sports services - would boost Daily Mail's online
reach and digital ad revenue from its globally popular websites, and
partly offset shrinking print revenue.
Private-equity firms Apax Partners LLP, TPG Capital LP, Bain Capital
LLC, Apollo Global Management LLC and Warburg Pincus LLC have also
submitted first-round bids, according to sources.
As well, the auction has attracted interest from Japanese online
retailer Rakuten Inc and Yellow Pages owner YP LLC, which is backed
by AT&T Corp.
While investors seemed pacified by Yahoo's results and the progress
on the sale, analysts said the company management's failure to
address key questions about the bidding process had added a level of
uncertainty.
[to top of second column] |
"We were hoping that (Mayer) would provide more color on what was
for sale ... and timing around the process," Neil Doshi, an analyst
at Mizuho Securities USA said in a note.
"Too little, too late" was how Barclays analyst Paul Vogel
characterized Yahoo's renewed focus on mobile and video search
initiatives.
However, Barclays, Mizuho and at least 9 other brokerages raised
their price targets on Yahoo's stock, mostly based on the change in
the value of Yahoo's Asian assets.
Oppenheimer was the most bullish, raising its target to $49 from
$40. The median price target on the stock is $40.
(Reporting by Rishika Sadam, Esha Vaish and Fareha Khan in Bengaluru;
Editing by Savio D'Souza and Sayantani Ghosh)
[© 2016 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.] Copyright 2016 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
 |
