Thomson family
Thomson family affirms importance of Reuters news – Stephen Adler
Saturday 25 February 2012
Following a meeting with the company’s leadership team at which he was asked to report on progress, Adler said he had never been more optimistic about the opportunities ahead, the support Reuters News has from the company, or the significant impact everyone can make in 2012.
“No news organization is as well positioned as Reuters to excel in the coming months and years: We are global in a global economy and digital in a digital world, with a multi-talented team, a passion for great journalism, a strong business model, and the staunch support of the company’s leaders and its majority shareholders and board of directors,” he said in an internal message titled Our Path Ahead.
Adler, who became editor-in-chief in February 2011, said his presentation to editorial staff reflected conversations within Reuters News all year long, including as recently as his “Town Hall meetings” in London last week.
Summarising his remarks, Adler said: “Our goal at Reuters News is to achieve journalistic excellence, harness that excellence to benefit our users, and thereby strengthen Thomson Reuters’ individual businesses and the company as a whole.
“We aim to be the best journalism organization in the world – best at being fast, accurate, and fair and best at offering insight, originality, and depth.
“Being fast, accurate, and fair remains absolutely essential to Reuters coverage, and we are committed to preserving and extending our leadership in this area. As news providers proliferate and standards waver elsewhere, our rock-solid reliability becomes an even stronger competitive advantage for us. And of course it is mandated by the Trust Principles.
“While fast, accurate, and fair are absolutely necessary, they are no longer sufficient in a changing company and a changing world. Our users also seek ideas and deeper understandings, so they can make smarter business decisions, advise clients more intelligently, achieve fresh insights, and influence the global conversation. Meeting these needs has become a bigger imperative as Reuters News has come to serve all the company’s businesses – traders and Media clients to be sure but also investment bankers, investment advisers, wealth managers, lawyers, accountants, compliance officers, and the scientific and pharma communities, among others. Facts alone are not enough for this demanding customer base – insights that can spur actions are also essential.
“Our mantra of news AND insight also reflects external changes, as a flood of basic news and information becomes available free via the web and social media. In this environment, we must differentiate ourselves by adding value – through our trustworthiness and our insight – lest we fall victim to the commoditization that has undermined the businesses of other news providers. Hence, we are nourishing Breakingviews, op-ed commentary, enterprise journalism, data mining, innovative video programming, stronger financial graphics, and other ventures that provide differentiated value, while we bolster our training, desk strength, technology, and talent to enhance speed, accuracy, and fairness.”
● SOURCE Reuters
Tom Glocer out as Thomson family appoints new CEO
Thursday 01 December 2011
The Financial Times quoted people close to the company as saying that David Thomson, chairman, and Geoffrey Beattie, the Canadian family’s consigliere who runs its investment vehicle Woodbridge, have been frustrated with the Thomson Reuters share price, which has fallen from above $41 to $27.22 this year.
The company has undergone a series of structural changes and management shake-ups over the past six months to address the disappointing performance of its markets division, which was essentially the old Reuters and mainly served financial institutions.
Glocer, 52, pictured left, has led Thomson Reuters since 2008, when Canada’s Thomson family completed its acquisition of Reuters. A mergers and acquisitions lawyer, he joined Reuters in 1993 and became the agency’s first American chief executive and the first not to have been a journalist in 2001.
He negotiated Reuters’ sale to the owner of Thomson Financial shortly before the global financial crisis. The merged group enjoyed almost three years of better than expected cost savings from the deal, but has struggled in the last year to roll out a financial services product called Eikon that was meant to unify the two legacy companies’ multiple data products.
By replacing him, the Thomson family effectively removes the last senior Reuters executive from the merged company’s top echelon.
Smith, pictured right, is a former journalist who joined the Thomson Newspaper Group in 1987. Until a few months ago he was head of the professional unit, which sells legal, tax and accounting products. That business has weathered the financial crisis much better than markets.
“By the end of the year, the organizational strategy and budget work I have been leading will be complete, and the transition plan I launched last summer will have achieved its objectives,” Glocer said in a statement. “Jim Smith is a very talented executive with whom I have worked closely over the past four years; he is ready to lead Thomson Reuters.”
The company’s stock has lost about 30 per cent of its value over the past six months as its banking and financial customers laid off thousands of employees and slashed costs.
David Thomson said in a statement: “Tom will be remembered as the individual who turned around Reuters ten years ago, led the company to growth and guided its sale to form Thomson Reuters. Over the past four years, Tom successfully directed an extensive integration, expanded our business internationally, revitalized the Reuters news organization and championed talent across the entire business. The board joins me in thanking Tom for his dedication and service to our company and wishes the very best for him and his family.”
He added: “Jim Smith will provide strong leadership for Thomson Reuters at this juncture. He has earned the respect and confidence of his colleagues and the board alike. His instincts and his customer focus have been the basis of a remarkable career in our business.
“Working with Tom Glocer, the board oversaw the successful execution of an established succession plan in the second half of 2011 and we look forward to beginning the new year with a new management team, new organizational structure, and ever stronger commitment to deliver long-term, sustainable value for all shareholders.”
The new organisational structure will consist of the following business units: financial and risk, legal, intellectual property and science, tax and accounting, and global growth organisation.
● VIDEO
● SOURCE Thomson Reuters | Reuters | The New York Times | Financial Times
Thomson family behind forced TR restructure - WSJ
Tuesday 26 July 2011
The Thomson family, impatient with Thomson Reuters’ performance, pressed for a senior management shake-up that saw the sudden departure of six top executives last week, putting pressure on CEO Tom Glocer to pull off a turnaround, The Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday.
With Glocer now directly overseeing the markets division, which contributes almost 60 per cent of group revenue, the newspaper said the chief executive is in the line of fire if results do not improve. Markets includes Reuters news agency.
The Journal quoted people familiar with the company saying it is not unusual for officials of Woodbridge, the Thomson family’s investment company, to have a say in setting strategy at Thomson Reuters, where they hold a 55 per cent controlling interest.
But the family’s move to flex its muscle spotlights the uncertain payoff from the $17 billion deal that united Thomson Corp and Reuters Group, it said. Since the day after the merger closed in April 2008, the combined company’s US-listed shares have risen just 0.7 per cent.
“Thomson Reuters is scheduled to release second-quarter financial results on Thursday, which will be a crucial day for Mr Glocer,” the Journal said. Investors have said publicly that they are looking for an explanation of Devin Wenig’s departure as chief executive of the markets division and more details about the division’s results. Wenig was a close associate of Glocer, who brought him into Reuters 17 years ago. The Journal said many investors and company executives had considered him to be a possible successor. Both men were former US mergers and acquisitions lawyers.
The Journal said: “People familiar with the company said Woodbridge has methodically set financial goals for the Thomson family’s businesses, and then expects executives to meet them, or face losing their jobs.”
Quoting informed sources, the Journal said that after discussions between Thomson Reuters management in New York and Woodbridge officials in Toronto, Wenig declined to go along with a broad overhaul.
“It was left to Mr Glocer to push through a more drastic proposal that consolidated the division, and wiped away layers of what the company called duplicative executive positions.”
The Journal said that, partly due to the weak economic recovery, Thomson Reuters and Glocer have been grappling with slow sales of products for investment banks, fund managers and other finance professionals.
“But the investment industry also has been slow to embrace Eikon, a revamped financial-data product that Thomson Reuters spent heavily on to develop.”
Eikon was launched last September as a next-generation desktop product for financial professionals incorporating social media features like Twitter. It brings together dozens of Reuters and Thomson legacy products. The company said at the launch that Eikon was intended to win customers from Bloomberg and other competitors. Clients were expected to take it up quickly, but that has not happened. The company has migrated only about 24,500 of the roughly 500,000 users of its legacy products to Eikon and it has brought in only 3,500 new users.
Largely because of spending to develop the new product as well as other new offerings, Thomson Reuters posted a seven per cent decline in underlying operating profit last year. The payoff was supposed to come this year, company executives told the Journal.
● SOURCE The Wall Street Journal
With Glocer now directly overseeing the markets division, which contributes almost 60 per cent of group revenue, the newspaper said the chief executive is in the line of fire if results do not improve. Markets includes Reuters news agency.
The Journal quoted people familiar with the company saying it is not unusual for officials of Woodbridge, the Thomson family’s investment company, to have a say in setting strategy at Thomson Reuters, where they hold a 55 per cent controlling interest.
But the family’s move to flex its muscle spotlights the uncertain payoff from the $17 billion deal that united Thomson Corp and Reuters Group, it said. Since the day after the merger closed in April 2008, the combined company’s US-listed shares have risen just 0.7 per cent.
“Thomson Reuters is scheduled to release second-quarter financial results on Thursday, which will be a crucial day for Mr Glocer,” the Journal said. Investors have said publicly that they are looking for an explanation of Devin Wenig’s departure as chief executive of the markets division and more details about the division’s results. Wenig was a close associate of Glocer, who brought him into Reuters 17 years ago. The Journal said many investors and company executives had considered him to be a possible successor. Both men were former US mergers and acquisitions lawyers.
The Journal said: “People familiar with the company said Woodbridge has methodically set financial goals for the Thomson family’s businesses, and then expects executives to meet them, or face losing their jobs.”
Quoting informed sources, the Journal said that after discussions between Thomson Reuters management in New York and Woodbridge officials in Toronto, Wenig declined to go along with a broad overhaul.
“It was left to Mr Glocer to push through a more drastic proposal that consolidated the division, and wiped away layers of what the company called duplicative executive positions.”
The Journal said that, partly due to the weak economic recovery, Thomson Reuters and Glocer have been grappling with slow sales of products for investment banks, fund managers and other finance professionals.
“But the investment industry also has been slow to embrace Eikon, a revamped financial-data product that Thomson Reuters spent heavily on to develop.”
Eikon was launched last September as a next-generation desktop product for financial professionals incorporating social media features like Twitter. It brings together dozens of Reuters and Thomson legacy products. The company said at the launch that Eikon was intended to win customers from Bloomberg and other competitors. Clients were expected to take it up quickly, but that has not happened. The company has migrated only about 24,500 of the roughly 500,000 users of its legacy products to Eikon and it has brought in only 3,500 new users.
Largely because of spending to develop the new product as well as other new offerings, Thomson Reuters posted a seven per cent decline in underlying operating profit last year. The payoff was supposed to come this year, company executives told the Journal.
● SOURCE The Wall Street Journal
Integration phase over, Thomson Reuters built to last - Tom Glocer
Tuesday 26 April 2011
But he is not ready to pack up his New York Times Square office quite yet, the Financial Times said in a report. “I promised the Thomsons I would stay to complete a job. My reckoning is that job isn’t completed, although we laid a really good foundation,” he said.
Glocer, who became CEO of the combined group on completion of the takeover three years ago, said: “I think we have what may become the defining corporate structure of the best institutions for the next 20 years.” He hailed the continuity provided by a large family stake – Canada’s Thomson family holds 55 per cent of the group’s shares through its investment company Woodbridge – and a public quote in New York and Toronto that keeps management on its toes. “Without the discipline of the market you can become so long-term, it’s perpetual mañana,” he said.
Investors are asking what comes next, the FT said. The group originally promised annualised savings worth $750 million but has steadily raised that forecast to $1.7 billion by the end of 2011. It has spent almost $500 million each year to achieve those savings, and some analysts worry that the group is returning to a pattern from Reuters’ history of repeated waves of investment and restructuring, but Glocer notes that integration expenses will fall to just $200 million in 2011.
Within months of the takeover deal closing in April 2008, a whirlwind blew through the financial hubs on which the group’s $7.5 billion markets division depends, emptying many traders’ desks from Wall Street to the City of London, the FT said.
The damage to Thomson Reuters was limited, however, by cost savings that were larger than expected, big product launches, the $5.4 billion professional information division that balances out the markets business and the group’s decision to abandon a listing in London, where investors were more bearish on its markets division.
Glocer is an acquisitions lawyer who has studied the history of failed deals, concluding that cultural rifts were usually their downfall, the FT said. He decided from the start not to sugar-coat the message to his Reuters colleagues: this was not a merger; Thomson was taking them over.
“When I hear the words ‘merger of equals’, ‘best of both’ or ‘two plus two equals five’ I think that’s a big short,” he says: “It’s a Thomson team complemented where necessary by people with a Reuters skillset.”
The group spent $900 million on 30-40 small acquisitions last year, but Glocer says his focus is on reviving top line growth largely organically, improving margins and converting 100 per cent of operating income into free cash flow.
“The longer-term goals have always been to deliver mid to high single-digit [revenue] growth, operating margins in the mid-20s and free cash flow somewhere north of $3bn. That’s work that’s still to be done and it won’t all be done this year either,” he says. Some of that growth will come from using Reuters’ international presence to expand the Thomson legal, tax, accounting, scientific and regulatory businesses from Latin America to the Gulf.
In a sidebar, the FT said grinding pressure on advertising and circulation revenues at US newspapers and magazines was turning the newswires owned by Thomson Reuters and Bloomberg from training grounds for young reporters into refuges for senior print journalists.
Referring to last week’s editorial restructuring in which four experienced recruits who had held senior positions at The Wall Street Journal, Time, Dow Jones and the South China Morning Post joined the company, it quoted editor-in-chief Stephen Adler as saying steady revenue from subscriptions to data services was a selling point.
Growing competition for instant news has forced wires to expand from their just-the-facts origins, and Adler said his restructuring would emphasise explanation and insight, the FT added.
● SOURCE Financial Times | VIDEO
● CLICK to view the FT video - The Thomson Reuters merger: Three years on
Thomsons are richest Canadians for 12th year
Friday 03 December 2010
The Thomson family, which has a controlling interest in Thomson Reuters, kept a strong grip on their status as the wealthiest Canadians this year, seeing their net worth increase by 6.2 per cent to more than C$23 billion.
They were far ahead of the second richest Canadian, grocery store magnate Galen Weston with C$8.5 billion, according to a survey by Canadian Business magazine.
It was the 12th year in a row that the Thomsons have held the top spot.
The list was calculated based on the real and estimated value of investments held at the end of September.
● SOURCE Reuters
They were far ahead of the second richest Canadian, grocery store magnate Galen Weston with C$8.5 billion, according to a survey by Canadian Business magazine.
It was the 12th year in a row that the Thomsons have held the top spot.
The list was calculated based on the real and estimated value of investments held at the end of September.
● SOURCE Reuters
Thomson and Reuters 'a matter for the next generation' - David Thomson
Saturday 18 September 2010
“Canadian media family executive David Thomson rarely ventures outside his Toronto hometown, but he was in London for a board meeting of Thomson Reuters followed by drinks and dinner with the City’s movers and shakers,” the Financial Times reported on Saturday.
“At the British Museum event midweek, he expressed faith in the digital media future, ahead of a relaunch of the family’s Globe and Mail publication in Canada. But he shrugged off the question of whether the Thomson name would remain twinned with Reuters as a matter for the next generation.”
The FT gave no further details about Thomson’s remarks at the event. It said chief executive Tom Glocer welcomed HSBC chairman and UK trade minister designate Stephen Green, who was a fellow panellist at a conference held during the week by strategic advisory group Oxford Analytica on global risk and the global economy.
Thomson, 53, grandson of the family media empire’s founder the late Lord Thomson, became chairman of Thomson Corporation in 2002 and chairman of the merged entity after the acquisition of Reuters in 2008. He does not use his hereditary title of 3rd Baron Thomson of Fleet. Forbes magazine ranks him and his family the richest in Canada and 20th richest in the world with a fortune of C$19 billion.
Lord Thomson founded a media dynasty, ensuring that control passed to his son, Kenneth who died in 2006, and his son, David. In his 1975 autobiography, Lord Thomson wrote: “David, my grandson, will have to take his part in the running of the Organisation and David’s son, too. With the fortune that we will leave to them go also responsibilities. These Thomson boys that come after Ken are not going to be able, even if they want to, to shrug off these responsibilities.”
● SOURCE Financial Times
Thomson family, Canada's richest, increases wealth despite recession
Thursday 19 November 2009
“In compiling our 11th annual Rich 100 list, we were surprised to discover that at the tail-end of the recession the majority of Canada's richest had not just stopped bleeding money - they were making it again. A lot of it,” the magazine said.
From April to September, the Toronto Stock Exchange composite index rose by nearly 45 per cent – a rise further bolstered by the strength of the Canadian dollar. That translated into a C$7.6 billion rise in the net worth of Canada’s 100 richest people. Almost half of that gain – just over C$3.5 billion – went to Canada’s richest family by far, the Thomsons headed by the 3rd Baron Thomson of Fleet, pictured.
“The family of the late Kenneth Thomson was worth roughly $21.99 billion as of late September, when we finalized our calculations for this year," Canadian Business said. "That’s an impressive 19% jump from last year, when the sagging fortunes of the media industry had hammered the value of the family’s central asset: more than 455 million shares in Thomson Reuters Corp. But that really fails to capture the awe-inspiring windfall that the rebound bestowed upon Canada’s richest clan. Consider this: that $3.5-billion gain from 2008 to 2009 translates into $10.9 million per day, $452,500 per hour, $7,540 per minute and $126 per second. But even at that, the Thomsons are still well below their record high of $25.35 billion, reached in 2007.”
Thomson Reuters shares have fallen by C$1.99 in the past couple of months, carving C$907 million off the family fortune, the magazine said.
“But the Thomsons won’t need to worry about selling assets to pay the bills any time soon. It’s been three years since Ken, the kindly family patriarch who was frequently seen walking his dog around Toronto’s posh Rosedale neighbourhood, passed away. His son, David, is now head of the family’s collection of businesses, and serves as chairman of Thomson Reuters.
“Like his father, David shuns the spotlight and rarely speaks publicly. That’s also true of the other siblings, Peter - who is also active in the family businesses and sits on the board of Thomson Reuters - and sister Taylor, who has worked as an actress and producer, but plays little role in the family business.”
● SOURCE Canadian Business
Thomson Reuters Foundation appoints new chairman
Wednesday 18 November 2009
David Binet, executive vice president of the Thomson family’s investment vehicle Woodbridge, has been appointed chairman of Thomson Reuters Foundation. He takes over immediately.
The appointment was made by the Foundation’s Board of Trustees. Binet is a trustee. Woodbridge is the majority shareholder in Thomson Reuters.
Binet succeeds Dick Harrington, former chief executive officer of The Thomson Corporation, who has been chairman of the Foundation since Thomson completed its takeover of Reuters in April 2008.
“David’s experience as a trustee, and his deep background in journalism, law and business make him uniquely qualified to lead the Foundation,” said Tom Glocer, chief executive officer of Thomson Reuters. “Under David’s guidance, the Foundation can expand the impact and influence of its good work around the world.” He added: “I want to thank Dick Harrington for his many contributions as chairman, seeing the organization through the integration and putting in place the cornerstones on which the new Foundation will be built.”
Binet is a former reporter and editor with The Canadian Press. Prior to joining Woodbridge in 1999 he was a partner in the Canadian law firm Torys. He is also a member of the board of directors of CTVglobemedia, which owns Canada's largest television network, CTV, a number of specialty channels and 34 radio stations, as well as The Globe and Mail, Canada's national newspaper.
“The Foundation has enormous potential to grow beyond its current scope and truly represent the breadth and depth of Thomson Reuters globally,” Binet said. “I am committed to unlocking that potential, building on the important initiatives under way and exploring new ways in which the Foundation can make a difference in the world.”
Monique Villa, chief executive officer of the Foundation, said: “I am delighted that David has agreed to chair the Board of Trustees of the Foundation. David has been actively involved in helping us strengthen and expand a world-class corporate foundation. His appointment comes at a time when we are preparing to launch two important programs -- to give broader access to the rule of law and to help affected populations when disaster strikes. His leadership, and his experience as a journalist and a lawyer, will be invaluable in this next exciting phase of the Thomson Reuters Foundation."
● SOURCE Thomson Reuters Foundation
The appointment was made by the Foundation’s Board of Trustees. Binet is a trustee. Woodbridge is the majority shareholder in Thomson Reuters.
Binet succeeds Dick Harrington, former chief executive officer of The Thomson Corporation, who has been chairman of the Foundation since Thomson completed its takeover of Reuters in April 2008.
“David’s experience as a trustee, and his deep background in journalism, law and business make him uniquely qualified to lead the Foundation,” said Tom Glocer, chief executive officer of Thomson Reuters. “Under David’s guidance, the Foundation can expand the impact and influence of its good work around the world.” He added: “I want to thank Dick Harrington for his many contributions as chairman, seeing the organization through the integration and putting in place the cornerstones on which the new Foundation will be built.”
Binet is a former reporter and editor with The Canadian Press. Prior to joining Woodbridge in 1999 he was a partner in the Canadian law firm Torys. He is also a member of the board of directors of CTVglobemedia, which owns Canada's largest television network, CTV, a number of specialty channels and 34 radio stations, as well as The Globe and Mail, Canada's national newspaper.
“The Foundation has enormous potential to grow beyond its current scope and truly represent the breadth and depth of Thomson Reuters globally,” Binet said. “I am committed to unlocking that potential, building on the important initiatives under way and exploring new ways in which the Foundation can make a difference in the world.”
Monique Villa, chief executive officer of the Foundation, said: “I am delighted that David has agreed to chair the Board of Trustees of the Foundation. David has been actively involved in helping us strengthen and expand a world-class corporate foundation. His appointment comes at a time when we are preparing to launch two important programs -- to give broader access to the rule of law and to help affected populations when disaster strikes. His leadership, and his experience as a journalist and a lawyer, will be invaluable in this next exciting phase of the Thomson Reuters Foundation."
● SOURCE Thomson Reuters Foundation
Analysts' expectations of Q2 results
Wednesday 05 August 2009
Thomson Reuters reports its Q2 results on Thursday, but analysts are already weighing in on what they expect. The market consensus is C$3.3 billion in revenue and C$.43 earnings per share.
● Drew McReynolds, RBC Capital Markets analyst, has pegged revenue for the quarter at C$3.28 billion with cash EPS of C$.44. He expects a less severe trough in organic revenue growth in markets in the first half of 2010 of -6.9 per cent from -8.5 per cent and further improvement in financial sector sentiment, keeping a “outperform” rating on the company by raising the price target to $37 from $34.
● Phillip Huang, UBS analyst, says the key focus should be on the Markets division, which is "late cycle" and should move into negative territory after flat growth in the first quarter. "Thomson Reuters has rallied due to the consolidation," he said in a note to clients. "However, we believe organic revenue growth for Thomson Reuters is later cycle than the market expects." He expects an EPS at 40 cents and maintains a “sell” rating on the company, with a price target of $23.50.
● Paul Steep, analyst with Scotia Capital, is far more bullish despite believing the second quarter of 2009 could be the company's "most challenging quarter since the credit crisis began" as IT budgets have been frozen in the first half of the year. "Our estimates remain significantly ahead of consensus, reflecting the significant upside of integration synergies in 2011 and beyond," he said in a note. "We continue to expect the firm to build on the quick integration wins delivered in 2008." He also forecasts revenues of C$3.2 billion and EPS of C$.44, but has a target price of C$47 on a “sector outperform” rating.
● SOURCE Seeking Alpha
● Drew McReynolds, RBC Capital Markets analyst, has pegged revenue for the quarter at C$3.28 billion with cash EPS of C$.44. He expects a less severe trough in organic revenue growth in markets in the first half of 2010 of -6.9 per cent from -8.5 per cent and further improvement in financial sector sentiment, keeping a “outperform” rating on the company by raising the price target to $37 from $34.
● Phillip Huang, UBS analyst, says the key focus should be on the Markets division, which is "late cycle" and should move into negative territory after flat growth in the first quarter. "Thomson Reuters has rallied due to the consolidation," he said in a note to clients. "However, we believe organic revenue growth for Thomson Reuters is later cycle than the market expects." He expects an EPS at 40 cents and maintains a “sell” rating on the company, with a price target of $23.50.
● Paul Steep, analyst with Scotia Capital, is far more bullish despite believing the second quarter of 2009 could be the company's "most challenging quarter since the credit crisis began" as IT budgets have been frozen in the first half of the year. "Our estimates remain significantly ahead of consensus, reflecting the significant upside of integration synergies in 2011 and beyond," he said in a note. "We continue to expect the firm to build on the quick integration wins delivered in 2008." He also forecasts revenues of C$3.2 billion and EPS of C$.44, but has a target price of C$47 on a “sector outperform” rating.
● SOURCE Seeking Alpha
Thomson Reuters to end London share listing - FT
Monday 22 June 2009
Thomson Reuters has decided to end the London listing for its shares, the Financial Times reported.
The board discussed the decision on Monday afternoon, the newspaper said in a report from New York. It is subject to shareholder and court approval.
Thomson Reuters needs 75 per cent majority approval from shareholders to replace the current UK-listed shares and their related US-listed American Depositary Receipts with a single Toronto listing.
The FT said the switch will be conducted through a scheme of arrangement in a manner designed to avoid tax penalties for shareholders and should be completed by the end of September if shareholders and courts give their approval.
It would end a period marked by large valuation gaps between the London and Toronto listings since the dual structure was put in place when Thomson took over Reuters in April 2008.
The UK shares currently trade 10 per cent below the North American stock and 95 per cent of the company is now held by non-UK shareholders, the FT said.
“By improving liquidity in the Canadian stock, which includes most of the Thomson family’s controlling 55 per cent stake, the group hopes to improve its appeal to investors and its chances of raising capital if needed in future,” the FT said.
“The company has been conscious of the long history of Reuters in London, which dates back to Paul Julius Reuter’s pioneering use of carrier pigeons and submarine telegraph cables in the 1850s.
“However, people close to the company told the Financial Times that the change would not affect its sizeable Thomson Reuters markets business in London, nor headcount at its professional division…”
The company could save about $10 million in accounting, legal and other costs associated with the UK listing, they estimated.
The FT said that just 25 per cent of the London listed shares are now in the hands of UK institutions, down from over 50 per cent, of which roughly half were active investors and the other half index tracking funds.
The group expects index trackers and some UK active investors to come out of the stock, but its greater weighting in the Toronto index should in part offset any flow-back issues.
● SOURCE Financial Times
The board discussed the decision on Monday afternoon, the newspaper said in a report from New York. It is subject to shareholder and court approval.
Thomson Reuters needs 75 per cent majority approval from shareholders to replace the current UK-listed shares and their related US-listed American Depositary Receipts with a single Toronto listing.
The FT said the switch will be conducted through a scheme of arrangement in a manner designed to avoid tax penalties for shareholders and should be completed by the end of September if shareholders and courts give their approval.
It would end a period marked by large valuation gaps between the London and Toronto listings since the dual structure was put in place when Thomson took over Reuters in April 2008.
The UK shares currently trade 10 per cent below the North American stock and 95 per cent of the company is now held by non-UK shareholders, the FT said.
“By improving liquidity in the Canadian stock, which includes most of the Thomson family’s controlling 55 per cent stake, the group hopes to improve its appeal to investors and its chances of raising capital if needed in future,” the FT said.
“The company has been conscious of the long history of Reuters in London, which dates back to Paul Julius Reuter’s pioneering use of carrier pigeons and submarine telegraph cables in the 1850s.
“However, people close to the company told the Financial Times that the change would not affect its sizeable Thomson Reuters markets business in London, nor headcount at its professional division…”
The company could save about $10 million in accounting, legal and other costs associated with the UK listing, they estimated.
The FT said that just 25 per cent of the London listed shares are now in the hands of UK institutions, down from over 50 per cent, of which roughly half were active investors and the other half index tracking funds.
The group expects index trackers and some UK active investors to come out of the stock, but its greater weighting in the Toronto index should in part offset any flow-back issues.
● SOURCE Financial Times
Pay boom for Thomson Reuters executives
Thursday 02 April 2009
Six senior executives of Thomson Reuters have been given share awards that could be worth $61 million, the Financial Times reported on Thursday.
The awards come after a year in which profits and revenues grew ahead of expectations but fears about the health of the financial and professional customers on which it depends also grew.
Tom Glocer, CEO, was granted restricted stock units valued at a potential $26.1 million over five years. The awards are not subject to performance criteria, the FT said.
“Separate cash and stock bonuses, and $757,000 relocation expenses, mean Glocer’s compensation jumped from £2.61 million for his last year at Reuters to $8.91 million for his first at the helm of the enlarged group,” it said.
A spokesman said the rise reflected larger responsibilities, performance achievements and currency swings. A similar one-time grant to Devin Wenig, chief executive of the markets division, was valued at $15.9 million, on top of a $4.54 million compensation package for the year.
Thomson Reuters said the awards for the two former Reuters executives, which exceeded those to former Thomson directors, were in part a reflection of the fact that they could not join Thomson’s defined pension plan for executives, which is now closed to new participants.
The details come amid heated argument about executive compensation, particularly in the Wall Street and City firms served by Thomson Reuters, and after contentious contract negotiations with some editorial staff, the FT said.
“But the company has little to fear from shareholder opposition to the rewards as it is 55 per cent controlled by the Woodbridge Company, which represents the Thomson family’s holding.”
Geoff Beattie, president of Woodbridge, was also granted restricted stock units with a theoretical value of $3.57 million. Niall FitzGerald, former Reuters chairman, received restricted stock valued at $707,000. The two deputy chairmen were architects of the Thomson Reuters deal.
The rewards followed a year in which the group hit the top end of its forecasts, with eight per cent pro forma revenue growth and a 19 per cent increase in underlying operating profit.
Last month it accelerated estimates of integration savings from the merger, raised the dividend and predicted further organic growth in 2009.
Executive salaries will be frozen this year, after Glocer’s basic salary slipped from the sterling equivalent of $1.67 million to $1.55 million.
A compensation committee report said it had aimed to increase the portion of his compensation tied to performance.
The Daily Mail said: “In an age of shrinking banking bonuses, the staggering payout made American Tom Glocer one of the highest earners in corporate Britain last year.
“The 49-year old lawyer hit the jackpot after merging Reuters, where he was chief executive, with North American media conglomerate Thomson.
“An estimated £15m share option package was triggered when the £9bn deal was finally given the green light last March.
“But the gravy train gathered more speed when Glocer pitched up in the US as head of the enlarged data and publishing giant and was handed share options worth over £18m in Thomson-Reuters.”
His basic pay at Reuters was a relatively modest £900,000. Glocer is aiming to cut overheads by nearly £1 billion – in a move that will see him slash jobs at the combined financial markets divisions.
The Mail said Thomson Reuters’ annual report published on Monday offers a tantalising glimpse into the pay and perks commonplace in US boardrooms.
“But his sweeteners could revive painful memories for longstanding shareholders.
“Glocer came under fire over the £230,000 annual rent Reuters used to pay for his London home.
“Reuters shares have lost less than a tenth of their value over the past year, making them among the best performers in the battered media sector.”
● SOURCE Financial Times | Daily Mail
The awards come after a year in which profits and revenues grew ahead of expectations but fears about the health of the financial and professional customers on which it depends also grew.
Tom Glocer, CEO, was granted restricted stock units valued at a potential $26.1 million over five years. The awards are not subject to performance criteria, the FT said.
“Separate cash and stock bonuses, and $757,000 relocation expenses, mean Glocer’s compensation jumped from £2.61 million for his last year at Reuters to $8.91 million for his first at the helm of the enlarged group,” it said.
A spokesman said the rise reflected larger responsibilities, performance achievements and currency swings. A similar one-time grant to Devin Wenig, chief executive of the markets division, was valued at $15.9 million, on top of a $4.54 million compensation package for the year.
Thomson Reuters said the awards for the two former Reuters executives, which exceeded those to former Thomson directors, were in part a reflection of the fact that they could not join Thomson’s defined pension plan for executives, which is now closed to new participants.
The details come amid heated argument about executive compensation, particularly in the Wall Street and City firms served by Thomson Reuters, and after contentious contract negotiations with some editorial staff, the FT said.
“But the company has little to fear from shareholder opposition to the rewards as it is 55 per cent controlled by the Woodbridge Company, which represents the Thomson family’s holding.”
Geoff Beattie, president of Woodbridge, was also granted restricted stock units with a theoretical value of $3.57 million. Niall FitzGerald, former Reuters chairman, received restricted stock valued at $707,000. The two deputy chairmen were architects of the Thomson Reuters deal.
The rewards followed a year in which the group hit the top end of its forecasts, with eight per cent pro forma revenue growth and a 19 per cent increase in underlying operating profit.
Last month it accelerated estimates of integration savings from the merger, raised the dividend and predicted further organic growth in 2009.
Executive salaries will be frozen this year, after Glocer’s basic salary slipped from the sterling equivalent of $1.67 million to $1.55 million.
A compensation committee report said it had aimed to increase the portion of his compensation tied to performance.
The Daily Mail said: “In an age of shrinking banking bonuses, the staggering payout made American Tom Glocer one of the highest earners in corporate Britain last year.
“The 49-year old lawyer hit the jackpot after merging Reuters, where he was chief executive, with North American media conglomerate Thomson.
“An estimated £15m share option package was triggered when the £9bn deal was finally given the green light last March.
“But the gravy train gathered more speed when Glocer pitched up in the US as head of the enlarged data and publishing giant and was handed share options worth over £18m in Thomson-Reuters.”
His basic pay at Reuters was a relatively modest £900,000. Glocer is aiming to cut overheads by nearly £1 billion – in a move that will see him slash jobs at the combined financial markets divisions.
The Mail said Thomson Reuters’ annual report published on Monday offers a tantalising glimpse into the pay and perks commonplace in US boardrooms.
“But his sweeteners could revive painful memories for longstanding shareholders.
“Glocer came under fire over the £230,000 annual rent Reuters used to pay for his London home.
“Reuters shares have lost less than a tenth of their value over the past year, making them among the best performers in the battered media sector.”
● SOURCE Financial Times | Daily Mail
Woodbridge signals it may sell Toronto shares, buy London ones
Thursday 26 February 2009
Woodbridge, the Thomson family's investment vehicle that controls more than half of Thomson Reuters shares, signalled on Thursday it may sell some of its shares traded in Toronto for those traded in London.
The company announced in Toronto that it had made a Canadian regulatory filing that would permit it to undertake transactions providing for sales of up to 10 million additional Thomson Reuters Corporation common shares (representing approximately two per cent of its holdings of Thomson Reuters Corporation common shares) and purchases of a similar number of Thomson Reuters PLC ordinary shares.
The filing does not commit Woodbridge to undertake any of these transactions. Woodbridge previously announced and completed similar transactions in the fourth quarter of 2008.
Any share sales would be through the Toronto Stock Exchange within 30 days. Purchases would be through the London Stock Exchange.
One ordinary share of Thomson Reuters PLC is equivalent to one common share of Thomson Reuters Corporation under Thomson Reuters dual listed company structure. As of yesterday, Woodbridge and other companies affiliated with it beneficially owned an aggregate of 439,767,486 Thomson Reuters Corporation common shares and 15,375,287 Thomson Reuters PLC ordinary shares (including ordinary shares underlying Thomson Reuters PLC American Depositary Shares) and had a voting interest in Thomson Reuters of approximately 55 per cent.
The London listing has traded at a discount to the North American quotes since Thomson's takeover of Reuters was completed last April.
The company announced in Toronto that it had made a Canadian regulatory filing that would permit it to undertake transactions providing for sales of up to 10 million additional Thomson Reuters Corporation common shares (representing approximately two per cent of its holdings of Thomson Reuters Corporation common shares) and purchases of a similar number of Thomson Reuters PLC ordinary shares.
The filing does not commit Woodbridge to undertake any of these transactions. Woodbridge previously announced and completed similar transactions in the fourth quarter of 2008.
Any share sales would be through the Toronto Stock Exchange within 30 days. Purchases would be through the London Stock Exchange.
One ordinary share of Thomson Reuters PLC is equivalent to one common share of Thomson Reuters Corporation under Thomson Reuters dual listed company structure. As of yesterday, Woodbridge and other companies affiliated with it beneficially owned an aggregate of 439,767,486 Thomson Reuters Corporation common shares and 15,375,287 Thomson Reuters PLC ordinary shares (including ordinary shares underlying Thomson Reuters PLC American Depositary Shares) and had a voting interest in Thomson Reuters of approximately 55 per cent.
The London listing has traded at a discount to the North American quotes since Thomson's takeover of Reuters was completed last April.
Thomson Reuters profit beats forecasts, sees 2009 revenue growth
Tuesday 24 February 2009
Thomson Reuters reported stronger-than-expected quarterly profit on Tuesday and said it expected revenue to grow in 2009 despite job cuts and decreased spending among financial industry customers.
The company also said it expected its underlying operating margin this year to be comparable to 2008, supported by revenue growth and higher savings from integration.
"I think the good thing is that we're giving outlook at all. I've seen so many companies with supposedly decent visibility into their business this year pull back and say, 'Well it's too hard,'" chief executive Tom Glocer said in an interview with Reuters.
Thomson Reuters reported 2008 Q4 net income of $656 million, or 79 cents a share, compared with $432 million, or 67 cents a share, a year earlier.
Profit from ongoing businesses, excluding special items, was 57 cents per share, beating the average analyst forecast of 39 cents.
Revenue in the company's closely watched markets division, which serves financial institutions, fell two per cent to $1.9 billion. Overall revenue was flat at $3.4 billion.
"I think it's going to continue to do better than people expect," Glocer said, referring to the markets division.
"It is hard to see anything else outside the doom and gloom in the two financial and media capitals," he said. "It's going to be a tough year, but when you put it all together, we still think the company will be able to show growth."
The professional division, which sells databases and other information to lawyers, accountants, scientists and the healthcare industry, reported revenue of $1.5 billion in Q4, up three per cent. The rise came in part from online, software and services revenue growth of 10 per cent.
The board has approved an increase in the dividend by four cents per share on an annualised basis. The quarterly dividend payable on March 26 is 28 cents per share.
Thomson Reuters raised its forecast for annualised cost savings from the merger to $1 billion by the end of 2011, up from $750 million projected in May 2008.
The integration plan does not include any new rounds of layoffs, Glocer said.
Pressed to comment on the rate of cancellations seen so far this year, Glocer said: "The one thing I can guarantee is there will be cancellations and there will be new recurring subscription sales, and actually the year isn't off badly on that score.”
Glocer attributed the results to Thomson's basic business model, providing "must-have" information to people who are willing to pay for it. "This is not a luxury good or discretionary purchase," he said during a conference call. "This is must-have information that our customers need to run their businesses."
Glocer also said the integration of Thomson and Reuters was moving more quickly than expected, helping to cut costs.
The Financial Times said concern over the outlook for financial services still drives investors’ perception of the stock, and helps explain the wide variation in perceptions of the company in Toronto, where professional assets such as WestLaw are better known, and London, where City sentiment pervades investors’ views of the company.
“The London listing was trading at a 15 per cent discount to the North American quotes on Tuesday morning, but Mr Glocer expressed no urgency about resolving this by ending the dual-listed company structure,” the FT said.
“This is one we haven’t had to spend any time on,” he said. “Either people will buy in [to the growth story] locally [in London] and it solves itself or the shareholder register turns more North American and it solves itself.”
His message, instead, was that Thomson Reuters can stand out from much of the sector in which its shares are categorised. “We can invest at a time when a lot of pure media companies are cutting back,” he said.
“Asked by one of his own reporters whether such investment might include an interest in one of the newspaper companies whose valuations have suffered dramatically, Mr Glocer was clear that he had little appetite for consumer media,” the FT said.
In theory, the $1.8 billion of free cashflow reported by last year would be enough to buy The New York Times, the FT said, but Glocer cautioned: “I’m not convinced we know how to run a newspaper any better than the ones who are running them today, and boy it looks a tough struggle.”
Glocer said the company was on course to see revenues rise next year, driven by forecast growth in Asia, the Gulf and Latin America.
"We're definitely going to be prioritising markets where there's strong growth," he said. "Tactically, it's easier to push on an open door than slam against one."
The £8.7 billion merger of Thomson and Reuters was expected to produce cost-savings of $750 million but the company said annualised benefits would now be closer to $1 billion from 2011.
"Our markets division is entirely a legitimate concern given what we've seen at companies like RBS, Lloyds and Citi," Glocer said. "But what analysts don't appreciate when they're at the heart of the financial crisis in London or New York, is that in many markets around the world - in Asia, the Gulf and Latin America - there is less gloom."
Thomson Reuters shares closed 11.56 per cent higher in New York, 11.47 per cent higher in Toronto, 10.39 per cent higher on NASDAQ and 6.58 per cent higher in London.
The FT said the persistence of a yawning gap between the group’s North American and London-listed shares is embarrassing.
“The 18 per cent discount at which the London listing trades to the US and Canadian listings is an operational irrelevance. Mr Glocer – without referring to it on Tuesday’s results call – probably helped narrow the gulf by announcing a better-than-expected fourth quarter for the markets division. If UK-based investors were expecting the financial data operations to take a heavy hit from the financial crisis (as they did when markets turned down earlier this decade), the division’s resilience should improve sentiment towards the London shares. Familiarity with the more stable Thomson businesses and satisfaction with the improved savings from integrating the two companies are only increasing.
“But it may take more than good housekeeping by Mr Glocer and his team to bridge the Atlantic. The controlling Thomson family has the tools for this job. Its investment vehicle, Woodbridge, has already in effect ‘bought’ UK stock with Canadian paper. Those operations could, and probably should, be restarted...
“Thomson and Reuters deserve credit for not abolishing the London listing at the time of the merger. That would have put UK investors’ noses out of joint. But some 60 per cent of the UK shares are now held by North American investors, who rightly figure that what looks good for Woodbridge is probably good for them. British investors are at liberty to buy back into the group on fundamentals if they wish to benefit from the relative re-rating. But if the UK share of the London listing drops below 20 per cent, they should expect to lose it.
● SOURCE Reuters | Financial Times | The Daily Telegraph
The company also said it expected its underlying operating margin this year to be comparable to 2008, supported by revenue growth and higher savings from integration.
"I think the good thing is that we're giving outlook at all. I've seen so many companies with supposedly decent visibility into their business this year pull back and say, 'Well it's too hard,'" chief executive Tom Glocer said in an interview with Reuters.
Thomson Reuters reported 2008 Q4 net income of $656 million, or 79 cents a share, compared with $432 million, or 67 cents a share, a year earlier.
Profit from ongoing businesses, excluding special items, was 57 cents per share, beating the average analyst forecast of 39 cents.
Revenue in the company's closely watched markets division, which serves financial institutions, fell two per cent to $1.9 billion. Overall revenue was flat at $3.4 billion.
"I think it's going to continue to do better than people expect," Glocer said, referring to the markets division.
"It is hard to see anything else outside the doom and gloom in the two financial and media capitals," he said. "It's going to be a tough year, but when you put it all together, we still think the company will be able to show growth."
The professional division, which sells databases and other information to lawyers, accountants, scientists and the healthcare industry, reported revenue of $1.5 billion in Q4, up three per cent. The rise came in part from online, software and services revenue growth of 10 per cent.
The board has approved an increase in the dividend by four cents per share on an annualised basis. The quarterly dividend payable on March 26 is 28 cents per share.
Thomson Reuters raised its forecast for annualised cost savings from the merger to $1 billion by the end of 2011, up from $750 million projected in May 2008.
The integration plan does not include any new rounds of layoffs, Glocer said.
Pressed to comment on the rate of cancellations seen so far this year, Glocer said: "The one thing I can guarantee is there will be cancellations and there will be new recurring subscription sales, and actually the year isn't off badly on that score.”
Glocer attributed the results to Thomson's basic business model, providing "must-have" information to people who are willing to pay for it. "This is not a luxury good or discretionary purchase," he said during a conference call. "This is must-have information that our customers need to run their businesses."
Glocer also said the integration of Thomson and Reuters was moving more quickly than expected, helping to cut costs.
The Financial Times said concern over the outlook for financial services still drives investors’ perception of the stock, and helps explain the wide variation in perceptions of the company in Toronto, where professional assets such as WestLaw are better known, and London, where City sentiment pervades investors’ views of the company.
“The London listing was trading at a 15 per cent discount to the North American quotes on Tuesday morning, but Mr Glocer expressed no urgency about resolving this by ending the dual-listed company structure,” the FT said.
“This is one we haven’t had to spend any time on,” he said. “Either people will buy in [to the growth story] locally [in London] and it solves itself or the shareholder register turns more North American and it solves itself.”
His message, instead, was that Thomson Reuters can stand out from much of the sector in which its shares are categorised. “We can invest at a time when a lot of pure media companies are cutting back,” he said.
“Asked by one of his own reporters whether such investment might include an interest in one of the newspaper companies whose valuations have suffered dramatically, Mr Glocer was clear that he had little appetite for consumer media,” the FT said.
In theory, the $1.8 billion of free cashflow reported by last year would be enough to buy The New York Times, the FT said, but Glocer cautioned: “I’m not convinced we know how to run a newspaper any better than the ones who are running them today, and boy it looks a tough struggle.”
Glocer said the company was on course to see revenues rise next year, driven by forecast growth in Asia, the Gulf and Latin America.
"We're definitely going to be prioritising markets where there's strong growth," he said. "Tactically, it's easier to push on an open door than slam against one."
The £8.7 billion merger of Thomson and Reuters was expected to produce cost-savings of $750 million but the company said annualised benefits would now be closer to $1 billion from 2011.
"Our markets division is entirely a legitimate concern given what we've seen at companies like RBS, Lloyds and Citi," Glocer said. "But what analysts don't appreciate when they're at the heart of the financial crisis in London or New York, is that in many markets around the world - in Asia, the Gulf and Latin America - there is less gloom."
Thomson Reuters shares closed 11.56 per cent higher in New York, 11.47 per cent higher in Toronto, 10.39 per cent higher on NASDAQ and 6.58 per cent higher in London.
The FT said the persistence of a yawning gap between the group’s North American and London-listed shares is embarrassing.
“The 18 per cent discount at which the London listing trades to the US and Canadian listings is an operational irrelevance. Mr Glocer – without referring to it on Tuesday’s results call – probably helped narrow the gulf by announcing a better-than-expected fourth quarter for the markets division. If UK-based investors were expecting the financial data operations to take a heavy hit from the financial crisis (as they did when markets turned down earlier this decade), the division’s resilience should improve sentiment towards the London shares. Familiarity with the more stable Thomson businesses and satisfaction with the improved savings from integrating the two companies are only increasing.
“But it may take more than good housekeeping by Mr Glocer and his team to bridge the Atlantic. The controlling Thomson family has the tools for this job. Its investment vehicle, Woodbridge, has already in effect ‘bought’ UK stock with Canadian paper. Those operations could, and probably should, be restarted...
“Thomson and Reuters deserve credit for not abolishing the London listing at the time of the merger. That would have put UK investors’ noses out of joint. But some 60 per cent of the UK shares are now held by North American investors, who rightly figure that what looks good for Woodbridge is probably good for them. British investors are at liberty to buy back into the group on fundamentals if they wish to benefit from the relative re-rating. But if the UK share of the London listing drops below 20 per cent, they should expect to lose it.
● SOURCE Reuters | Financial Times | The Daily Telegraph
FT speculates Thomson Reuters may de-list in London
Friday 09 January 2009
More than 150 years after Paul Julius Reuter started to supply prices from the London Stock Exchange, traders there are beginning to ask whether Thomson Reuters might one day disappear from the UK market, the Financial Times said on Friday.
The likely reason for the symbolic shock of a possible de-listing: the valuation gap between the shares in London and in North America, currently about 22 per cent.
“North American investors are concerned the depressed UK price drags on their stock,” the FT said. “They ask whether further action, possibly including an end to the London listing, may be needed.”
Analysts at TD Newcrest, a Canadian brokerage, summarised the dilemma last week, saying: “We are reluctant to continue recommending [the Canadian stock] when we know that investors can buy an identical economic interest in the company for 22 per cent less via [the London] shares.”
Analysts attribute the discrepancy to hedge fund activity, currency exposures and differing views of the company’s assets on opposite sides of the Atlantic, but many have been startled by the extent of the gap, the FT said.
“Thomson people think the old Thomson [which encompasses legal, healthcare and scientific databases] is greatly underestimated [in London],” said Patrick Wellington, a Morgan Stanley analyst.
UK investors with memories of Reuters’ deep troubles in past market slumps have also been more bearish about prospects for its financial data business, Thomson Reuters Markets, which contributes 60 per cent of group sales and about 40 per cent of profits, the FT said.
“We’re prepared to invest the time and energy and effort with our UK investors to help them understand the dynamics of the business,” chief financial officer Robert Daleo told a conference this week. Extensive investor relations efforts have made little difference so far, however.
The FT said Woodbridge, the Thomson family investment company and the group’s largest shareholder, has attempted to tackle another factor behind the UK discount, providing liquidity to arbitrageurs who struggle to borrow the tightly held Toronto stock by swapping some of its Canadian shares for UK paper.
The strategy has been modestly lucrative. By effectively buying about C$300 million of stock at about a 20 per cent discount, Woodbridge has made about C$60 million, but the sum is small set beside the family holding company’s wealth. Two rounds of such trades have yet to close the gap.
The FT said Woodbridge, which had 70 per cent of Thomson Reuters Corp when the takeover closed, has so far amassed an eight per cent holding in Thomson Reuters Plc.
The FT said it is thought unlikely that Woodbridge would seek to increase its overall holding beyond the current total, which has edged up from 53 per cent to 55 per cent with dividend reinvestments.
A Thomson Reuters spokesman would not comment on the dual listed company (DLC) structure, it said. “People close to the company say it has no plans to change it in the next few months. However, board members review the structure regularly, aware that other DLCs, such as Reed Elsevier, have not seen such wide valuation gaps.”
The London shares represent 24 per cent of the group’s value. North Americans now control more than 50 per cent of the UK stock.
“One theory is that the group can wait until north American ownership is sufficiently high that the majority of London investors ask for Canadian or U.S. stock instead. What that percentage would have to be, however, is unclear,” the FT said.
“Ending the former Reuters’ presence on the London exchange would be a symbolic shock to many.”
● SOURCE Financial Times
The likely reason for the symbolic shock of a possible de-listing: the valuation gap between the shares in London and in North America, currently about 22 per cent.
“North American investors are concerned the depressed UK price drags on their stock,” the FT said. “They ask whether further action, possibly including an end to the London listing, may be needed.”
Analysts at TD Newcrest, a Canadian brokerage, summarised the dilemma last week, saying: “We are reluctant to continue recommending [the Canadian stock] when we know that investors can buy an identical economic interest in the company for 22 per cent less via [the London] shares.”
Analysts attribute the discrepancy to hedge fund activity, currency exposures and differing views of the company’s assets on opposite sides of the Atlantic, but many have been startled by the extent of the gap, the FT said.
“Thomson people think the old Thomson [which encompasses legal, healthcare and scientific databases] is greatly underestimated [in London],” said Patrick Wellington, a Morgan Stanley analyst.
UK investors with memories of Reuters’ deep troubles in past market slumps have also been more bearish about prospects for its financial data business, Thomson Reuters Markets, which contributes 60 per cent of group sales and about 40 per cent of profits, the FT said.
“We’re prepared to invest the time and energy and effort with our UK investors to help them understand the dynamics of the business,” chief financial officer Robert Daleo told a conference this week. Extensive investor relations efforts have made little difference so far, however.
The FT said Woodbridge, the Thomson family investment company and the group’s largest shareholder, has attempted to tackle another factor behind the UK discount, providing liquidity to arbitrageurs who struggle to borrow the tightly held Toronto stock by swapping some of its Canadian shares for UK paper.
The strategy has been modestly lucrative. By effectively buying about C$300 million of stock at about a 20 per cent discount, Woodbridge has made about C$60 million, but the sum is small set beside the family holding company’s wealth. Two rounds of such trades have yet to close the gap.
The FT said Woodbridge, which had 70 per cent of Thomson Reuters Corp when the takeover closed, has so far amassed an eight per cent holding in Thomson Reuters Plc.
The FT said it is thought unlikely that Woodbridge would seek to increase its overall holding beyond the current total, which has edged up from 53 per cent to 55 per cent with dividend reinvestments.
A Thomson Reuters spokesman would not comment on the dual listed company (DLC) structure, it said. “People close to the company say it has no plans to change it in the next few months. However, board members review the structure regularly, aware that other DLCs, such as Reed Elsevier, have not seen such wide valuation gaps.”
The London shares represent 24 per cent of the group’s value. North Americans now control more than 50 per cent of the UK stock.
“One theory is that the group can wait until north American ownership is sufficiently high that the majority of London investors ask for Canadian or U.S. stock instead. What that percentage would have to be, however, is unclear,” the FT said.
“Ending the former Reuters’ presence on the London exchange would be a symbolic shock to many.”
● SOURCE Financial Times
Thomson family ‘unhappy’ at UK stock discount
Thursday 08 January 2009
The Thomson family, controlling shareholder in Thomson Reuters, is unhappy at the discount of around 25 per cent of its UK stock trades to the Canadian listing, the Financial Times reported on Thursday. Citing gossip, it said there was talk of a possible capital restructuring.
The family funded a buy-back of the London-traded shares in 2008 by selling down its Canadian issues. That triggered speculation it could eventually delist the UK stock entirely, the FT said.
But authorisation for the buy-back expired at the end of last year and cannot be renewed as Thomson Reuters is in a closed period ahead of its 2008 results on 24 February.
Another option to narrow the discount would be to make the two lines of stock fully fungible or mutually interchangeable. However, dealers saw it more likely the family will wait until after the results and reinstate its stock swap, the FT said.
Thomson Reuters closed at 1,458 pence, down two per cent. The slide came in response to UBS “sell” advice and after comments from chief financial officer Robert Daleo to an investor conference that revenue growth this year would slow.
● SOURCE Financial Times
The family funded a buy-back of the London-traded shares in 2008 by selling down its Canadian issues. That triggered speculation it could eventually delist the UK stock entirely, the FT said.
But authorisation for the buy-back expired at the end of last year and cannot be renewed as Thomson Reuters is in a closed period ahead of its 2008 results on 24 February.
Another option to narrow the discount would be to make the two lines of stock fully fungible or mutually interchangeable. However, dealers saw it more likely the family will wait until after the results and reinstate its stock swap, the FT said.
Thomson Reuters closed at 1,458 pence, down two per cent. The slide came in response to UBS “sell” advice and after comments from chief financial officer Robert Daleo to an investor conference that revenue growth this year would slow.
● SOURCE Financial Times
Woodbridge signals Thomson Reuters share swap
Friday 21 November 2008
Woodbridge, the Thomson family’s investment vehicle and controlling shareholder of Thomson Reuters, signalled on Friday it may be about to exchange Thomson Reuters Corporation shares for shares in Thomson Reuters PLC.
Under a Canadian regulatory filing in Toronto, Woodbridge would sell up to 15 million common shares in the corporation on the Toronto Stock Exchange and concurrently buy a similar number of ordinary shares in the PLC on the London Stock Exchange.
Woodbridge and other companies affiliated with it beneficially own an aggregate of 444,780,673 Thomson Reuters Corporation shares and 8,334,812 Thomson Reuters PLC ordinary shares. Its voting interest in Thomson Reuters is approximately 55 per cent.
● SOURCE Fox Business
Under a Canadian regulatory filing in Toronto, Woodbridge would sell up to 15 million common shares in the corporation on the Toronto Stock Exchange and concurrently buy a similar number of ordinary shares in the PLC on the London Stock Exchange.
Woodbridge and other companies affiliated with it beneficially own an aggregate of 444,780,673 Thomson Reuters Corporation shares and 8,334,812 Thomson Reuters PLC ordinary shares. Its voting interest in Thomson Reuters is approximately 55 per cent.
● SOURCE Fox Business
Thomson family may increase its stake
Saturday 20 September 2008
The Thomson family signalled it may slightly increase its voting interest in Thomson Reuters. In a regulatory filing on Friday, the family said it may sell as many as 10 million of the common shares listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange and spend the proceeds on ordinary shares listed on the London Stock Exchange.
Woodbridge, the Thomson family’s holding company, said the move was being made to facilitate trading in the stocks.
Based on current prices, the transaction would result in a slight increase in Woodbridge’s 55 per cent voting interest, it said.
Since Thomson’s takeover of Reuters in April, London shares of the new dual-listed company have traded at a large discount to those in Toronto.
● SOURCE The Gazette (Montreal)
Woodbridge, the Thomson family’s holding company, said the move was being made to facilitate trading in the stocks.
Based on current prices, the transaction would result in a slight increase in Woodbridge’s 55 per cent voting interest, it said.
Since Thomson’s takeover of Reuters in April, London shares of the new dual-listed company have traded at a large discount to those in Toronto.
● SOURCE The Gazette (Montreal)
Thomson family raises its stake
Friday 09 May 2008
The Thomson family’s holding company, Woodbridge, and other companies associated with it now own about 70 per cent of the outstanding common shares of Thomson Reuters Corp, giving it an approximately 54 per cent voting interest in Thomson Reuters.
Thomson Reuters said Woodbridge received 1.47 million common shares of Thomson Reuters Corp at C$36.26 per share on 1 May. This was under the company’s dividend reinvestment plan.
● SOURCE Thomson Reuters
Thomson Reuters said Woodbridge received 1.47 million common shares of Thomson Reuters Corp at C$36.26 per share on 1 May. This was under the company’s dividend reinvestment plan.
● SOURCE Thomson Reuters
