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Ubisoft’s shares have spiked up by 36% following word of a potential buyout by Tencent and the Guillemot family.
Following the lacklustre launch of Star Wars Outlaws and a delay to Assassin’s Creed Shadows, Ubisoft lowered its financial targets and predicted a break-even non-IFRS operating income for the fiscal year.
This resulted in shares plunging by 29.3% over five days, hitting a 10-year low for the publisher.
On the rise
With a rumoured potential buyout being considered by Tencent and the Guillemot family – already holding 9.2% and around 20.5% of Ubisoft’s net voting rights respectively – the publisher’s shares began to rise again at the tail-end of last week.
As of the time of writing (October 7th), shares are up 35.8% since October 1st and are worth one cent more than this time last month at €13.68 ($15.01) each.
During this spike period, Ubisoft has experienced one of its biggest single-day jumps on record, but still has a long way to go to overturn its 52.5% decline over the past year.
Shares have fallen by 76.4% since 2019 and even with the current incline, are worth only 16% of their value during Ubisoft’s pandemic peak. On January 22nd, 2021, shares were worth €85.18 ($93.50), versus only €13.68 today ($15.01).
Room to improve
Minority investor AJ Investments called for Ubisoft to go private last month, arguing the need for a new CEO and for the publisher to stop focusing on “average games”.
Now, Ubisoft has released a statement regarding the rumoured buyout, sharing: “Ubisoft has noted recent press speculation regarding potential interests around the company. It regularly reviews all its strategic options in the interest of its stakeholders and will inform the market if and when appropriate.
“The company reiterates that management is currently focused on executing its strategy, centred on two core verticals – open world adventures and GaaS-native experiences.”
Last month the company noted its “commitment” to the long-term value of brands and affirmed its goal to create games “for the broadest possible audience“.
