London-based Chime has received an offer of 365p per share, plus an interim dividend for the current year of 2.53p per share, the company said on Wednesday night.
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Providence and WPP did not immediately return calls for comment.
WPP already owns a 20% stake in Chime and reports suggest it could retain this stake in the new company if a deal is reached.
In a statement posted to the stock exchange yesterday, Chime’s board said “there can no be certainty that the Consortium will proceed to make an offer for Chime”, yet that doesn’t appear to have put off excited investors.
The United Kingdom takeover panel has set a deadline of 1600 GMT on August. 26 for the consortium to either make an offer or withdraw. The company says that a further announcement will be made in due course.
Chime is a communications and sports marketing group that includes CSM Sport & Entertainment, the ad/marketing shop VCCP Partnership, and healthcare marketer OPEN Health. In 2003 it sold 49 per cent of its HHCL advertising agency to WPP and in 2013 Chime objected to WPP’s purchase of JMI.
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Chime Communications reported pre-tax profit of $64.2m for the 2014 year, with operating income of $429.2m.
