• by Joe Mandese , September 23, 2005

Although it described the talks as "very preliminary" and said that it was too early to tell whether it would actually make an offer, Publicis Groupe's public acknowledgement of an interest in acquiring Aegis Group has triggered a flurry of activity among big institutional investors. While many have used the opportunity associated with the run-up in Aegis' stock price to take some profits, at least one big investor appears to be loading up on Aegis shares: Deutsche Bank.

In a statement released early Friday morning, Deutsche Bank acknowledged acquiring a 4.51 percent stake in Aegis, making it the British media services company's fourth-largest investor after Goldman Sachs.

However, a second disclosure by Deutsche Asset Management Group, a global fund managed by Deutsche Bank, has also taken a 3.57 percent stake--giving the Deutsche Bank Group control over more than 8 percent of Aegis, the parent of Carat, Vizeum, Isobar, and other media networks and research companies.

That makes the combined Deutsche Bank holdings the second-largest institutional investor in Aegis, behind Harris Associates, which own 10.1 percent of the company. That appears to push French corporate raider Vincent Bollore down to the fourth-largest investor. Previously, Bollore, who controls Havas, was Aegis' third-largest shareholder, with a 6.03 percent stake.

Exactly what the flurry of activity means is not yet clear. Some observers believe Aegis shares--which have grown about 40 percent since Bollore took his stake in early August--may now be too pricey for a takeover of the company, although other suitors are believed to be interested in Aegis as well, including the world's largest advertising company, Omnicom.