Nordstrom take-private would strike a hard bargain 25 Mar 2024 The department store chain’s founding family is again mulling a buyout, Reuters reported. Sagging shares and weak results make it a target. Wringing out high enough returns to make a deal worthwhile requires both holding a stern line on price and dramatically reigniting growth.
Capital Calls: Monte dei Paschi 21 Nov 2023 Concise views on global finance: The Italian Treasury raised 920 mln euros by selling a 25% stake in the bank on the open market. So far, it looks like a better outcome for taxpayers than submitting to the onerous sale conditions offered by UniCredit in 2021.
Endeavor’s envy could become contagious 7 Nov 2023 The $12 bln talent agency and WWE owner led by Hollywood mogul Ari Emanuel is eyeing options after billionaire François-Henri Pinault paid a rich price for peer CAA. Silver Lake, with 71% of the vote, wants to take it private. A stingy bid risks making minority investors jealous.
Capital Calls: Digital euro, Thames Water 28 Jun 2023 Concise views on global finance: Brussels is in a new push to convince EU member states and the European Parliament to endorse a digital euro; Britain’s Thames Water could be placed into special administration.
Capital Calls: Citi hands SEC a SPAC victory 5 Apr 2022 Concise views on global finance: The top underwriter for blank-check firms is pressing pause on its business. It shows that proposed SEC rules have real teeth.
Rising IPO tide could lift all Gulf boats 20 Jan 2022 Riyadh, Abu Dhabi and Dubai are fighting it out to be the region’s listing venue of choice. But recent evidence suggests much greater foreign investor interest in Gulf IPOs in general than previous misfires like Aramco. The competitive tension may wind up being good for everyone.
Capital Calls: Moderna’s $40 bln shot gain 29 Nov 2021 Concise views on global finance: News of a spreading Covid-19 variant added $40 bln to the biotech’s market value. Investors are pricing in about 3 billion extra jabs. That’s rosy given competition and uncertainty.
Capital Calls: Merck pill, Zoom deal 1 Oct 2021 Concise views on global finance: Investors are being stingy about the pharma firm’s new drug to treat Covid-19; the video-conference company and Five9 are dropping their $15 bln transaction.
Chinese tech tycoon gives de-SPAC new meaning 27 Aug 2021 Joyy’s founder wants to take the video-streaming outfit private in a mooted $7.8 bln deal. Having sold many of its businesses already, what's left is mostly a huge cash pile. A buyout of what’s effectively a blank-cheque firm at a 100% premium puts a wild twist on the M&A craze.
Capital Calls: U.S. jobs, Fitness IPO 7 Jul 2021 Concise views on global finance: U.S. employment vacancies tip scales towards workers; Mark Wahlberg-backed F45’s IPO values it at twice what an attempted SPAC deal did last year, justifiably.
Chinese buyout provides instructive exit interview 22 Jun 2021 After months of talks, Japan’s Recruit is backing a $5.7 bln privatisation of employment portal 51job. Growth is patchy while rival Kanzhun’s shares have soared following its IPO. It’s a timely reminder of the occupational hazards for investors in U.S.-listed Chinese companies.
Jardine dissenters start packing Bermuda shorts 13 Apr 2021 Fewer than half of minority investors backed the $36 bln Hong Kong conglomerate’s offer to simplify its structure. The rare dual-holding setup means the deal will still go though. But it sets up a series of showdowns with hedge funds in the UK territory’s courts.
Jardine restructuring could tempt an activist 16 Mar 2021 The Hong Kong conglomerate’s plan to end a double holding structure more than halved its discount to net asset value to 10%, per Breakingviews calculations. While that will ward off some pushy investors, others may smell a chance for more change. And there is plenty to clean up.
Unloved Chinese car site deserves a test drive 16 Mar 2021 The $12 bln online dealer Autohome raised $688 mln in its Hong Kong secondary listing, 30% less than initially planned. It’s not a sexy electric-vehicle maker, but an asset-light model and 40% net profit margin bests peers. As demand recovers, its current discount seems unfair.
Caymans may provide shelter in buyout storm 15 Mar 2021 Lowball takeover bids from bosses at China Biologic and Sina are tempting investor lawsuits in the Caribbean islands. Such M&A valuation challenges understandably have petered out in Delaware. Minority shareholders in Chinese companies, however, could use some extra protections.
Capital Calls: Petrobras 19 Feb 2021 Concise views on global finance in the Covid-19 era: Brazil's president becomes Petrobras' activist.
Corona Capital: Kazakhs, Norwegians, Airlines 15 Oct 2020 Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: Kaspi gives ECM bankers something to smile about; Norway’s sovereign wealth fund has a so-so third quarter; and United Airlines has more bad news on jobs.
UK bookie bidding war may have two winners 25 Sep 2020 William Hill shares rose 38% after it said Caesars Entertainment and Apollo made rival approaches. Neither will make a decent return at its current market value of $4 bln. Better to opt for a carve-up, with the casino operator taking the U.S. unit and the buyout group the rest.
Corona Capital: Europe’s recovery, Indian selloffs 21 Aug 2020 Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: The latest economic reports from Britain, France and Germany paint a patchy picture; and why the virus will hinder New Delhi’s asset-sale programme.
Corona Capital: U.S. recovery, Small-business aid 30 Jun 2020 Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: White House virus adviser Anthony Fauci’s estimate that U.S. cases could breach 100,000 a day is bad news for the economy. Plus: Uncle Sam’s loan program for small businesses comes to an end with money in the bank.