DOW JONES

PARIS QATARI investment company Qatar Holding held two percent of the capital of French media and telecommunications group Vivendi at the end of February, according to Vivendi’s recently published annual reference document.

The Qatari company’s shareholding stood at 1.55 percent at the end of last year.

Vivendi’s biggest single shareholder is BlackRock with a 4.6 percent stake. French sovereign wealth fund FSI, together with its main shareholder Caisse des Depots et Consignations owns 3.74 percent of Vivendi, and Norway’s sovereign wealth fund has a 2.01 percent stake, according to the document. Altogether, institutional investors held 92.9 percent of the company’s capital.

Vivendi rose as much as 2.7 percent after the Paris-based company said in its annual report that Qatar Holding, founded by sovereign fund Qatar Investment Authority, acquired 5.6 million Vivendi shares to boost its stake as of February 29 from the 1.55 percent it owned at the end of 2011. The stake is worth about 354 million euros at the stock’s recent price.

The fund also raised its stake in France’s largest publisher, Lagardere SCA (MMB), to 12.8 percent, local stock market regulator AMF said two days ago.

Shares of Vivendi traded 1.4 percent higher at 14.19 euros as of 11:18 am in Paris.

Vivendi’s annual report also showed Chief Executive Officer Jean-Bernard Levy’s total compensation was raised 10 percent to 4.46 million euros in 2011, including the value of stock options as of December 31.

The CEO has forecast a profit decline through 2013 as the French mobile-phone unit SFR faces tougher competition and falling prices at home.

Levy’s total 2011 compensation was worth 3.85 million euros based on the value of Vivendi shares on March 13, the report also said.