Arbiter Partners' Ross Levin talks betting on French compounding legend, Vincent Bolloré

Ross Levin, Director of Research at Arbiter Partners, joins the podcast for the second time to discuss betting on French compounding legend, Vincent Bolloré: Bolloré SE and Compagnie de l'Odet. For more information about Arbiter Partners, please visit: ⁠https://arbiterpartners.net/ Chapters: [0:00] Introduction + Episode sponsor: Tegus [2:36] What are Bolloré SE and Compagnie de l'Odet and why are they interesting to Ross [12:18] Asset value / share count [16:46] Why (in Ross' opinion) is this an alpha opportunity and why now [23:03] Betting on compounding legend, Vincent Bolloré [27:40] Risk of getting "Icahn'd" [32:20] Share re-purchases / capital allocation [39:31] French regulatory risk [41:41] What's the path for l'Odet [45:42] Vivendi [50:38] Anything else that investors should be looking out for here? Follow on re: capital allocation scenarios [54:57] Ross' quick thoughts on CCIs and France overall Episode sponsor: Tegus If you’ve been reading my newsletters, you know how often I rely on Tegus for my research. It’s truly revolutionized how I get up to speed on new industries and companies. Tegus has the largest transcript library in the world, with over 75% of private market transcripts. Whether you’re curious about AI, biotech, or any niche market, Tegus has the insights you need. What sets Tegus apart is its all-in-one platform. It’s packed with expert call transcripts, management checks, panel calls, and in-depth financial data. No more jumping between different services or piecing together fragmented data. With Tegus, everything is right at your fingertips. The best part? The insights you get are from the very people shaping the industries you’re interested in. You’ll find perspectives from insiders and executives that you simply can’t get anywhere else. To see Tegus in action and understand why it’s my go-to resource, visit Tegus.com/value – that’s T-E-G-U-S dot com slash value. Trust me, once you try Tegus, you’ll never look back.