Sharewatch: WPP Rises Despite Delay Over Grey Deal

Sir Martin Sorrell’s WPP group saw shares rise by 0.69% yesterday to close at 581p, despite news that its proposed merger with Grey Global could be delayed following a European Commission request for further information prior to approving the deal.

The request for additional details of £845 million merger comes under the European Commission’s competition protection legislation, meaning that the merger review procedure will now be delayed until the EC has received the new information (see Grey Global Merger Delayed By EC Information Request).

Meanwhile, ITV was also seen in focus with shares climbing 1.15% higher to finish at 109˝p. The UK’s largest commercial broadcaster looks set to face tough competition in the battle for Christmas ratings following the launch of a strong festive schedule from the BBC yesterday (see BBC Brings Out Big Guns For Christmas Ratings War).

Elsewhere, commercial radio group GWR continued to perform poorly with shares dipping by 0.86% despite its recent revelation that profits had risen by 12% to £6.9 million in the six months to September. However, the company also warned that conditions in the radio advertising market remain tough (see GWR Profits Up Despite Weak Advertising Market).

The benchmark FTSE 100 index fell 0.5% to close at 4,719.4 following nervousness from the banking sector ahead of today’s third quarter trading statement from Barclays. However, the mid-cap FTSE 250 inched up by 0.2% to 6,583.

The closing prices of media company shares on Wednesday were: