WPP attracts takeover interest from Havas, Apollo and KKR - report

(Sharecast News) - Advertising giant WPP has reportedly attracted takeover interest from France's Havas and private equity firms Apollo and KKR ahead of its demotion from the FTSE 100. According to The Times, French rival Havas - controlled by the family of billionaire Vincent Bolloré - was understood to have held talks about WPP, while senior City sources said Apollo and KKR had also run the rule over the company's assets.

WPP is currently valued at about £3bn, down from a peak of £24bn in 2017. Hedge funds have taken an 8.5% short position in its shares, according to The Times, showing that they expect a further fall, in part because an impending FTSE 100 demotion would see WPP lose out on investment from tracker funds that follow the index.

The Times said it was not clear whether any formal bids for WPP will materialise. Bidders could look to buy the company in its entirety, take large stakes in the business or attempt to pick off parts of the holding group.

It was understood there have been talks at a high level inside Havas, which is led by Bolloré's son Yannick, about the potential for a deal involving WPP.

One industry source suggested the French company might have an interest in buying the group's ad-buying agency, WPP Media. Another raised the prospect that Havas, or another part of Bolloré's empire, could build a sizeable stake and seek a board seat. Havas declined to comment to The Times.

Senior City sources said that both Apollo and KKR, as well as Havas, had been talking about a potential transaction relating to WPP.

It was understood that Apollo considered making an approach for the company late last year, but decided against it at the time. Apollo said this weekend it was not in discussions or considering a bid for WPP.

KKR last year bought out FGS Global, the City PR firm, from WPP. It declined to comment.

Other sources played down the chances that Apollo or KKR would follow through with deals relating to WPP. Earlier this year it was reported that US consultancy giant Accenture had considered a bid, but these talks fell down.

WPP told The Times: "We do not comment on speculation."

At 0955 GMT, the shares were up 3.3% at 297.90p.

Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell, said: "Executives at embattled advertising agency WPP have recently been snapping up shares in the company and it seems they may not be the only ones who see value in the business. There is speculation about a bid from French rival Havas and private equity firms reportedly looking to pick off bits of the business.

"After years when it felt like WPP's shares had been suffering a slow puncture, the tyre has burst in stock market terms for the company in 2025. This led to the departure of CEO Mark Read and investors in the US apparently being rallied by law firms for a class action lawsuit alleging they were misled about the state of the business.

"WPP has a lot of moving parts which could be an obstacle to any takeover deal for the group as a whole but, with the shares trading at low levels last seen more than a quarter of a century ago, it is vulnerable to being picked apart."