eBay has seen its share price soar after it announced “significant progress” in determining the role of StubHub in its portfolio, with reports suggesting it is to be sold.
The online commerce giant has given an update on the strategic portfolio review it announced earlier this year after activist shareholders pressured it to look at selling the ticketing resale platform and classifieds segment.
While numerous reports suggest suitors are lining up to acquire StubHub, Devin Wenig, eBay president and chief executive, did not detail the specifics of where the strategic review now stands or future timetables as he announced the group’s Q2 results.
“We’re focused on determining the best path forward to create shareholder value,” Wenig said.
eBay had already seen its share price rise by 35 per cent prior to this week, and it jumped another five per cent following widespread coverage of the potential StubHub sale.
CNBC cited sources who said there are “multiple” parties interested in buying StubHub.
In Q2, StubHub platforms drove revenue of $264m, up seven per cent on both an as-reported and FX-Neutral basis, and gross merchandise volume (GMV) of $1.1bn, up five per cent on an as-reported basis and up six per cent on a FX-Neutral basis.
eBay’s GMV fell 4.4% to $22.6bn in the second quarter from a year earlier.
eBay announced in March it would commence a strategic review of the company’s assets, including StubHub and its classifieds, following pressure from investors such as Elliott Management and Starboard Value.
In January, it was revealed in a letter to eBay that the activist investors believed the parent company should separate from StubHub to boost its stock.
It outlined a five-step plan to improve eBay’s “floundering” stock, including separating StubHub and its classified properties to focus on its core marketplace, which eBay has confirmed it will review.
“Over the course of the last two months, we’ve met with a number of shareholders to understand their views,” said Wenig at the time.
“The bottom line is that we all share common ground: we see tremendous opportunity ahead and want to see eBay’s full potential realised over the long-term. The initiatives we are announcing today are the result of this constructive dialogue.”
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