PARIS, April 23 Reuters Shares in Vivendi rose on Friday after the French media conglomerate, which is controlled by billionaire Vincent Bollore, posted higher first quarter sales.

Vivendis shares were up by 1.5 in early session trading, while the shares of Groupe Bollore also edged up 0.5.

Vivendis sales were lifted by the prolonged strong performance of its music unit Universal UMG and a sales jump at its publishing division, which includes Editis.

The Parisbased group is also seeking to cash in on the music industrys revival by listing Universal, home to singers such as Lady Gaga and Taylor Swift, by the end of the year.

Vivendi has delivered a solid set of 1Q revenues with organic growth in UMG 9.4, Editis 40.1, and Havas 0.8 the standout areas, wrote investment bank Citi, which kept a neutral rating on Vivendi shares.

Reporting by Mathieu Rosemain; Editing by Sudip KarGupta

Source Reuters