Yahoo Preparing Financial Information for Potential Buyers (YHOO)

Yahoo! Inc. (NASDAQ: YHOO) is preparing financial information for potential buyers, according to a report by the Wall Street Journal. The Journal, citing people familiar with the matter, said that the Sunnyvale, California-based company is preparing to send the financial information to potential bidders in the next few days.

Yahoo’s financial advisers, Goldman Sachs and Allen & Co., are expected to start sending financial information to private equity firms and other potential bidders and partners. The move from Yahoo indicates that the company, which has struggled to compete in online advertising in the last few years, is interested in being acquired. People familiar with the matter told Wall Street Journal that the information package being prepared to be sent out will stop short of a traditional “book”, however, it will include select public and non-public data on Yahoo’s growth and revenue expectations.

Yahoo, in an internal memo to staff, had said that it was fielding inquiries from multiple parties. Market participants have been speculating that Yahoo is prepared for a possible takeover ever since the company’s board fired Carol Bartz last month. The company has been undergoing a strategic review to identify the best way to enhance value for its shareholders.

Over the last few years, Yahoo has failed to capitalize on the tremendous growth in the online advertising market, losing share to Google and Facebook. This has happened even as Yahoo remains one of the most popular websites on the Internet. The company had hired Bartz hoping that she will be able to turnaround the ailing company. However, Bartz failed to deliver the desired results during her tenure at Yahoo and was fired as a result.

Apart from private equity firms, Yahoo is also seeing interest from Jack Ma, the founder and CEO of Alibaba. Yahoo, in fact, owns a 43% stake in Alibaba. However, analysts say that Alibaba could be valued more than Yahoo. Last week, Alibaba’s Ma said at an event in Stanford University that he is very interested in Yahoo.

Post Written By: Ed Liston Ed Liston is a senior contributing editor at TheStockMarketWatch.com. An active market watcher and investor, Ed guides an independent team of experienced analysts and writes for multiple stock trader publications. He is widely quoted in various financial publications on the Internet. When Ed is not writing about stocks, investing in stocks, talking about stocks, or otherwise doing something stock related, he likes to go sailing and fishing in his yacht.