Vivendi Loses More Than $12 Billion
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Filed at 10:22 a.m. ET
PARIS (AP) -- Debt-laden French media giant Vivendi Universal reported a loss of more than $12 billion for the first half of the year as it took a bigger than expected charge to reflect a writedown in value of its assets.
The company also said it plans to sell at least $9.8 billion worth of assets, including the U.S. publisher Houghton Mifflin that it acquired only last year.
The sale plans signaled the first step to break up the media and entertainment conglomerate constructed in a two-year buying spree by former chairman Jean-Marie Messier.
Messier was initially hailed as French business marvel for his efforts to transform Vivendi, once simply a water company, into a world-leading media giant to rival the likes of AOL Time Warner Inc. But his reputation took a dive as Vivendi racked up huge debts and the largest losses in French corporate history.
Messier was ousted in July, leaving Vivendi struggling with $18.6 billion of debts. Messier's replacement, Jean-Rene Fourtou, has sought to control Vivendi's borrowings and what he has called a cash crisis at the company.
Vivendi shares fell 7 percent in afternoon trading in Paris after the company released results for the first six months of the year.
The debt rating agency Standard & Poor's cut Vivendi's long-term corporate credit rating to junk bond status -- from BBB minus to BB -- following the release of the company's half-year results.
The downgrade ``is a very serious development and could inhibit the company's ability to successfully sort out its liquidity crisis and avoid bankruptcy,'' said Joseph D'Virgilio, a telecommunications analyst for French banking giant Societe Generale.
S&P warned of further downgrade if Vivendi doesn't get new funding within a month.
Vivendi's loss of 12.3 billion euros for the January-June period was inflated by a charge of 11 billion euros ($10.8 billion) for depreciating assets and a 3.4 billion euro ($3.3 billion) provision against potential future losses.
Analysts were expecting better. They had anticipated writedowns of between 5 billion and 10 billion euros ($4.9 billion to $9.8 billion) to reflect the drop in value of media assets and holdings.
In the first half of 2001, Vivendi had a net profit of 22 million euros. However, the company posted a net loss of 13.6 billion euros for all of 2001 as it wrote down the value of assets by 15.7 billion euros. The 2001 loss was the biggest loss in French corporate history.
Vivendi has come under increasing pressure from its board and shareholders to sell assets to reduce debts and boost its shares, which have dropped precipitously this year.
The plan to dispose of 10 billion euros worth of assets -- five billion euros ($4.9 billion) of them within nine months -- was approved by directors at a board meeting Tuesday, the company said in a statement.
Houghton Mifflin, which supplies textbooks and published J.R.R. Tolkien's ``The Lord of the Rings'' in the United States, was acquired by Vivendi for $1.7 billion in 2001.
Last month, Vivendi announced a sweeping restructuring of its pay-television division Canal Plus. Other assets to be sold include Italian digital TV platform Telepiu.
More information on Vivendi's disposal plans is expected when its board meets Sept. 25 to, the firm said, ``review in detail the company's strategy to optimize all of its assets.''
In another move away from Messier's era, Vivendi announced the appointment of Jean-Bernard Levy as chief operating officer. Levy replaces Eric Licoys, who was an ally of Messier.
Licoys agreed to continue with Vivendi as an adviser to Fourtou, the company said.
Vivendi said it also has made progress with plans for a 3 billion euro ($2.94 billion) credit facility with banks. Last month, Vivendi had already obtained a 1 billion euro ($980 million) unsecured credit facility.
http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/business/AP-Vivendi.html
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Filed at 10:22 a.m. ET
PARIS (AP) -- Debt-laden French media giant Vivendi Universal reported a loss of more than $12 billion for the first half of the year as it took a bigger than expected charge to reflect a writedown in value of its assets.
The company also said it plans to sell at least $9.8 billion worth of assets, including the U.S. publisher Houghton Mifflin that it acquired only last year.
The sale plans signaled the first step to break up the media and entertainment conglomerate constructed in a two-year buying spree by former chairman Jean-Marie Messier.
Messier was initially hailed as French business marvel for his efforts to transform Vivendi, once simply a water company, into a world-leading media giant to rival the likes of AOL Time Warner Inc. But his reputation took a dive as Vivendi racked up huge debts and the largest losses in French corporate history.
Messier was ousted in July, leaving Vivendi struggling with $18.6 billion of debts. Messier's replacement, Jean-Rene Fourtou, has sought to control Vivendi's borrowings and what he has called a cash crisis at the company.
Vivendi shares fell 7 percent in afternoon trading in Paris after the company released results for the first six months of the year.
The debt rating agency Standard & Poor's cut Vivendi's long-term corporate credit rating to junk bond status -- from BBB minus to BB -- following the release of the company's half-year results.
The downgrade ``is a very serious development and could inhibit the company's ability to successfully sort out its liquidity crisis and avoid bankruptcy,'' said Joseph D'Virgilio, a telecommunications analyst for French banking giant Societe Generale.
S&P warned of further downgrade if Vivendi doesn't get new funding within a month.
Vivendi's loss of 12.3 billion euros for the January-June period was inflated by a charge of 11 billion euros ($10.8 billion) for depreciating assets and a 3.4 billion euro ($3.3 billion) provision against potential future losses.
Analysts were expecting better. They had anticipated writedowns of between 5 billion and 10 billion euros ($4.9 billion to $9.8 billion) to reflect the drop in value of media assets and holdings.
In the first half of 2001, Vivendi had a net profit of 22 million euros. However, the company posted a net loss of 13.6 billion euros for all of 2001 as it wrote down the value of assets by 15.7 billion euros. The 2001 loss was the biggest loss in French corporate history.
Vivendi has come under increasing pressure from its board and shareholders to sell assets to reduce debts and boost its shares, which have dropped precipitously this year.
The plan to dispose of 10 billion euros worth of assets -- five billion euros ($4.9 billion) of them within nine months -- was approved by directors at a board meeting Tuesday, the company said in a statement.
Houghton Mifflin, which supplies textbooks and published J.R.R. Tolkien's ``The Lord of the Rings'' in the United States, was acquired by Vivendi for $1.7 billion in 2001.
Last month, Vivendi announced a sweeping restructuring of its pay-television division Canal Plus. Other assets to be sold include Italian digital TV platform Telepiu.
More information on Vivendi's disposal plans is expected when its board meets Sept. 25 to, the firm said, ``review in detail the company's strategy to optimize all of its assets.''
In another move away from Messier's era, Vivendi announced the appointment of Jean-Bernard Levy as chief operating officer. Levy replaces Eric Licoys, who was an ally of Messier.
Licoys agreed to continue with Vivendi as an adviser to Fourtou, the company said.
Vivendi said it also has made progress with plans for a 3 billion euro ($2.94 billion) credit facility with banks. Last month, Vivendi had already obtained a 1 billion euro ($980 million) unsecured credit facility.
http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/business/AP-Vivendi.html