Canal+’s entry onto the London Stock Exchange on Monday, December 16th, 2024, was met with a mixed reception. While the <strong>IPOstrong> itself was seen as a positive sign for the City, following a year of low activity, the company’s share price experienced a substantial drop. Shares opened at 290p but fell by 16% to 244.2p before midday.
Despite the initial dip, the <strong>French pay-TV operatorstrong> boasts impressive growth. Since 2016, Canal+ has nearly tripled its international subscriber base. With 26.8 million subscribers, nearly two-thirds are now located outside of France. The company also reports over 400 million monthly active users globally on its OTT and video streaming platforms. This success, however, wasn't immediately reflected in the share price performance.
“As we join the London Stock Exchange, we are excited to continue to deliver on our ambition to provide the best entertainment and value proposition to subscribers globally,” said Maxime Saada, CEO of Canal+. “With a growing presence in high-growth markets and transformational potential acquisitions like MultiChoice in Africa, I am proud to lead Canal+ into its next chapter and would like to thank each and every member of our team who has made today possible.” Canal+’s Ordinary Shares were admitted to trading at 08.00 GMT on 16 December 2024, under the ticker (CAN.L). The company's spin-off from Vivendi also impacted its market performance on this initial day of trading. While Havas and Hachette experienced positive market movement following the spin-off, Canal+'s debut showed a more volatile picture.