With CEO Out, Wall Street -- and Havas? -- Plot Demise of Aegis

Aegis CEO Robert Lerwill has left the company. The company’s stock soared on the news. Now analysts and investors expect rival network Havas to make a sixth bid for the company. Already, analysts say they expect Aegis to be subsumed.

Aegis was suffering from the recent loss of the $750 million Renault cars account to Omnicom. With the auto industry in turmoil, the chances of the company replacing that business with one of equal size is slim. Brand Republic reported that there was internal strife under Lerwill:

Insiders said Lerwill left after boardroom clashes with Napier, while the company’s decision not to immediately replace Lerwill is seen as another sign the group may soften its stance to a takeover approach from Havas.

Havas chief Vincent Bollore has long had designs on the company. He teamed with WPP’s Martin Sorrell in 2004 in a failed bid to break up and acquire Aegis. The Aegis board has been split over whether to accept a Havas takeover. Havas owns nearly 30 percent of Aegis.

Dow Jones reports the obvious:

“People are asking questions as to whether he [Lerwill] left before being pushed out ahead of a possible deal,” said one trader.

And analysts clearly believe that deal is already in the works:

“The market loves restructuring stories. You never know who’s going to come in, you never know if it’s going to open the door to a merger. Aegis is basically a break-up story anyway,” said Alex DeGroote, media analyst at Panmure Gordon.