TeamViewer said if Manchester United exercises an option to end a pricey sponsorship deal the company could see “significant upside to its margin beyond 2023″ after forecasting stagnant growth this year.
TeamViewer wants to remain a “global partner”, but at a level “that’s significantly cheaper than what we had up until now”, chief executive Oliver Steil said in a call with journalists on Tuesday.
The company reached an agreement late last year to cut short the sponsorship, which was originally slated to go through 2026. Under the terms of the deal Manchester United will look for a new sponsor for the front of its shirts and TeamViewer will “transition out of this role as soon as practicably possible”.
Activist fund Petrus Advisers called TeamViewer’s deals with Manchester United and the Mercedes Formula 1 racing team “appalling judgment”. Media reports had pegged the value of the football deal at about £47 million (€53m). Petrus disclosed a stake of just below 3 per cent in TeamViewer in November.
TeamViewer jumped 15 per cent in Frankfurt on Tuesday, after earlier gaining as much as 18 per cent, the biggest intraday increase since November.
The software company also projected revenue for the year above analyst expectations and announced plans to buy back as much as €150 million in shares.- Bloomberg
