March 04, 2010

By By Graeme Neill, The Bookseller

U.K. entertainment retailer HMV's share performance could make it a target for private equity bidders, an influential retail analyst has claimed.

Arden Securities' Nick Bubb said despite its position as the "last man standing" on the British high street after the demise of Zavvi and Woolworths, "[HMV's] shares have been very poor performers."

He said: "This reflects the market's long-term concerns about the digital threat, the competition from supermarkets and online players and the worry about the future of [HMV Group's bookseller] Waterstone's, while investors also appear unconvinced about the diversification into live music, via the ?46 million [$69 million] acquisition of the Mama group."

HMV will unveil its new three-year plan and Waterstone's strategy at an analysts' presentation on March 26.

Bubb said: "Management are very focused on realizing shareholder value and ultimately we expect the market to give the group more of the benefit of the doubt. If not, then HMV will be very vulnerable to a private equity bid."

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