By Elvira Pollina
MILAN (Reuters) -MFE-MediaforEurope, the TV group controlled by Italy’s Berlusconi family, on Wednesday proposed an 8% increase in its annual dividend and wrote down the value of its holding in German takeover target ProSiebenSat.1.
The commercial TV company said it would distribute a dividend of 0.27 euro per share on its 2024 results, up from 0.25 euro a year ago. That was on the back of a 138 million euro group net profit, down from 209 million euro the year before.
It said it wrote down its 30% stake in the Bavaria-based group by 128 million euros, in a move “which has a purely accounting effect and does not affect cash” and reflects “transparency, prudence and rigorous management”.
On an adjusted basis and excluding the one-off ProSieben hit, MFE reported a 266 million euro consolidated net profit, up 27% from 2023.
Chief Financial Officer Marco Giordani told analysts the write down aligned the value of MFE’s holding to the level that ProSieben agreed in a deal with private equity firm General Atlantic, which in March took a minority stake in the German company.
MFE, which has commercial TV operations in Italy and Spain, first invested in ProSieben in 2019 as part of a plan to create a pan-European advertising-funded broadcaster, a strategy so far resisted by ProSieben, which wants to stay independent.
The Italian-rooted company last month launched a 940 million euro cash-and-share bid for the shares of ProSieben it does not already own, offering the minimum price allowed under German law, in a move aimed at tightening its grip on the company.
It has since crossed the 30% threshold, the level which triggers a takeover bid. The tender process is expected to start in May and to settle in July, people familiar with the matter previously said.
Once the offer period ends, MFE can buy additional ProSieben shares on the market without having to repeat a formal offer to all investors. No decision has been taken yet in that regard, Giordani told analysts.
In the short term, MFE said it did not expect any major impact on its business from the uncertain global economic outlook linked to the trade war between the United States and China.
Advertising sales in the first quarter were broadly in line with the same period last year and the company’s expectations, MFE said, given the challenging comparison with 2024.
Sales were boosted by its main Italian market with Spanish operations still lagging. Despite growing economic uncertainty, MFE said it expected a more favourable trend in the upcoming quarters.
(Reporting by Elvira PollinaEditing by Keith Weir)
