Key Takeaways
- Paramount Global shares jumped 12% on Thursday after the media company reportedly received an $11 billion offer for its TV and film studio from private equity firm Apollo.
- The deal would dwarf the company’s current valuation of $8.56 billion and would not include other assets such as the company’s streaming division.
- The move follows months of speculation around the company after reports about several offers and potential deals.
Paramount Global (PARA) stock jumped Thursday after it was reported that private equity giant Apollo Management had offered $11 billion for its Hollywood studio.
The Wall Street Journal cited anonymous sources in a report about the bid, adding that the deal would not include other company assets, including CBS, and the company’s streaming division. The reported offer from Apollo would exceed Paramount’s current market capitalization which was around $8.65 billion after a 12% jump in the company’s share price on Thursday.
The news follows months of speculation surrounding the future of Paramount. There were a potential merger with Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) in December. That was followed a month later by reports of a $30 billion offer from entrepreneur Byron Allen’s Allen Media Group, to acquire the company’s outstanding stock and debt.
Skydance CEO David Ellison had also reportedly been seeking to take Paramount Global private by pursuing the controlling stake owned by Shari Redstone through her family’s holding company National Amusements. Skydance had reportedly been particularly keen on the Hollywood studio assets when it first approached the Redstone family.