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$FDS ( ▲ 0.75% ) needs to make a move. What is the CEO going to do?
Factset is sitting at a $10B market cap. The stock hasn’t performed well and everyone in and around data/information services knows they are the most at risk to this AI revolution. What are they going to do? The employees there are great. Everyone who works there loves the culture. But it is suprising to me that we haven’t seen activist investors step in. It seems like a prime target to shake things up and really focus on what matters.
My gut says its time to find a buyer. $FDS ( ▲ 0.75% ) has never been good at making acquistions on their own and unless they are really going to shake up that approach, I think they make more sense as part of another company.
Who should acquire them? My gut reaction is $MSCI ( ▲ 3.36% ). There are lots of synergies, not lots of product overlap and $MSCI ( ▲ 3.36% ) is sitting at a market cap of $42B+. MSCI could use some exciting news to share to push its own stock price forward. Think of the combined entity together:
Best-in-class risk models from MSCI Barra. Build that into the FactSet terminal along with their great multi-asset class risk system.
Index business- $MSCI ( ▲ 3.36% ) has a great index business, but $FDS ( ▲ 0.75% ) also has a strong index business and team. Lots of opportunities to probably save on cost and build on synergistic products.
Factset brings their terminal business and you tie in the $MSCI ( ▲ 3.36% ) private market data they bought with Burgiss- no brainer value add.
Continue to build out a wealth offering, and now you have more data, indices and risk capabities.
Even if $MSCI ( ▲ 3.36% ) didn’t raise cash to do this, arguably $FDS ( ▲ 0.75% ) investors would be thrilled with an all-stock deal. I find it hard to believe this isn’t a good deal for everyone.
