UMG’s IPO Pays Off

• Universal Music Group’s shares were up more than a third in their stock market debut on Tuesday as investors bet a boom in music streaming still has a long way to run. Reuters reports that UMG saw its market value leap upward to $55 billion in Europe’s largest listing of the year, finishing at $29.32 per share Tuesday, approximately 36% above the reference price of $21.70 per share.

Big winners from the Amsterdam listing include U.S. hedge fund billionaire Bill Ackman and his Pershing Square fund, and China’s Tencent, alongside Vivendi’s controlling shareholder Vincent Bollore, who are retaining large slices of Universal. Shares in Bollore, which holds 27% of Vivendi, were up 2.4%, while the Amsterdam-listed shares of Ackman’s Pershing Square were up 4%.

Reuters adds that Universal Chairman & CEO Sir Lucian Grainge will also get bonuses linked to the listing that a source close to the company said would amount to at least $140 million.