Unicredito’s share price fall overdone 11 Mar 2003 Whatever one thinks of the Italian bank's move on Generali, it doesn't justify a E3.5bn collapse in market cap. The bizarre move is probably a necessary evil. But Profumo, Unicredito's boss, must explain clearly why this is so.
Nokia Networks plunges into loss 11 Mar 2003 The Finnish mobile networks business appears to be suffering from low capacity utilisation and cost overruns. Nokia s mobile phone unit has defied the bears. But the stock may not benefit until the network damage is quantifiable.
Corus aluminium deal on a knife-edge 11 Mar 2003 The court s decision may determine whether Corus faces a rescue rights issue or a debtforequity swap. The metals group is taking its Dutch supervisory board to court in an effort to force the sale through.
Wolters Kluwer suffers for disappointing 11 Mar 2003 The publisher has delivered some modest incremental bad news that clarifies its preliminary results statement. Disappointed investors have reacted with all the coolness of a toddler.
Gas Natural bid has impact beyond sector 11 Mar 2003 For one, it highlights Spain s maze of crossshareholdings, such as La Caixa s stakes in Gas Natural and Repsol. These muddy shareholder interests and suck up capital that would be better deployed elsewhere. They should be scrapped.
Regime change for Britain? 11 Mar 2003 Blairism is in trouble. Labour has only ever backed Tory Tony reluctantly. It hates Bush's war and threatens to reject both that and Blair. So would a war without UN backing turn Britain Left for the first time in 24 years? No but political instability is back.
Credit derivatives are not a get out of jail free card 10 Mar 2003 Top banks have got rid of their worst risks to smaller brethren and the insurance sector through the purchase of credit derivatives. So the argument goes. But are sellers of credit risk protection that stupid?
UK bosses don’t want their powers checked 10 Mar 2003 What's the surprise here? Turkeys don't vote for Christmas. Recent corporate disasters have rammed home the the need for checks and balances. A strong independent nonexec is one.
Did CSFB stand by Quattrone too long? 10 Mar 2003 That s one interpretation of events, but another is that CSFB would have been worse off if it had cut Quattrone loose earlier.
Generali scrum gets still messier 10 Mar 2003 Not only has Intesa built up a stake. Bollore, the French raider, has increased his stake in Mediobanca, Generali's largest shareholder. This elaborate game of intrigue underlines the failings of Italian capitalism. Companies aren't allowed to get on with running themselves.
Telecom Italia shareholders man the barricades 10 Mar 2003 And understandably so. If TI was merged with Olivetti using market prices, they would suffer a loss of E2bnE3bn. Such a scenario is hypothetical. Tronchetti, who controls both groups, has so far treated minorities fairly. He must continue to do so.
Gas Natural in E24.5bn Iberdrola hostile bid 10 Mar 2003 The Spanish utility sector is hotting up again, with Spain s biggest hostile bid yet. Local rules stop Iberdrola from launching a counterbid. But another utility may step in. Then the sparks will really fly.
Deutsche Telekom results look OK on the surface 10 Mar 2003 The fixedline business is steady. The wireless unit has not sacrificed earnings for growth. And the IT division could have fared worse. But DT s strategy is unclear and its accounts are opaque. The high yield on the shares reflects more of a risk than an opportunity.
It gets worse for NYSE’s specialist market makers 7 Mar 2003 Lower trading volumes amid political uncertainty are the obvious explanation for a spate of recent profit warnings from US market makers. But investors are also squeezing trading costs through greater use of programme trades, while hedge funds are in retreat. But investors are also squeezing trading costs through greater use of programme trades. That is making life harder for investment banks too.
Vivendi says its crisis is not over 7 Mar 2003 It certainly is not. Without asset sales, its debts are set to rise by a half in 2003. Meanwhile, its businesses are in rotten shape. Yet management is still valiantly trying to kid the buyers of those assets that it is not a distressed seller. C'est magnifique, mais…
SixCon shareholders should vote for demerger 7 Mar 2003 Osmond's mainlypaper offer is not compelling. He is also trying to take too big a slice of the action for himself. Better to back the demerger and entertain bids for the component bits afterwards.
Intel suffers from price hike 7 Mar 2003 The result? Intel lost more business than it expected. So much for customer loyalty and pricing leverage in these markets. The world s leading chipmaker raised flashmemory prices expecting demand to catch up with supply.
Spanish corporate governance bows out, again 7 Mar 2003 Minority shareholders have already been trounced once by lowball bids in Spain s property takeover frenzy. Now it looks as though they re being stitchedup again. Suspicions of concert action in one of the bids are rife.
LVMH operating proft jumps 29% 6 Mar 2003 Getting shot of the Phillips auction house and cost cutting at DFS and Sephora made a huge difference. Meanwhile, the core luxury goods business managed to keep its head above water.
Suez beds down after horrific 2002 6 Mar 2003 Abrupt management changes, huge writeoffs and dwindling investor confidence have savaged the French utility s share price. Chairman and CEO Gerard Mestrallet says this year will be one of consolidation. But the case for a breakup of the group is growing.
ITV merger worries erode Carlton 6 Mar 2003 A widening deal spread reveals the beginning of doubts about the UK broadcaster's merger with peer Granada, as a regulatory ruling looms. The regulators are only one reason to worry, though. Granada investors could be just as much of a threat to the deal.
Insurer dividend cuts are de rigueur 6 Mar 2003 Aegon and Royal & Sun Alliance are cutting payouts to conserve capital. And why not? There is safety in numbers. But Swiss Life, which raised capital recently, has issued a profit warning. Insurers have yet to prove they have got a grip on the past.
Investment bankers aren’t ideal bank CEOs 6 Mar 2003 Although they have some suitable qualities, they often aren t good at operational management. Too often that leads to frantic dealmaking with decidedly mixed results.
Friends Provident is latest insurer to warn on dividend 5 Mar 2003 The UK life assurer is still looking to grow the dividend, only at a lower rate and depending on equity returns. The company should not be punished too harshly for giving greater clarity on its payout than its rivals have.
France Telecom dressed up for capital hike 5 Mar 2003 New boss Thierry Breton has detailed his plans for generating E15bn of free cashflow between now and 2005. Will this be enough for investors to buy into a rights issue? Or will they want to see operating expenses fall first?
The dollar has further to fall 5 Mar 2003 The US has the economic fundamentals of an emerging market. Its yawning trade deficit would spark a crisis anywhere else. That s not happened, yet. But the quality of the foreign capital that plugs the US current account gap is deteriorating fast.
Carrefour reports 15% eps growth 5 Mar 2003 In these tough times, that seems to put the super back in supermarket. But the retailer s operating performance was actually quite stodgy.
Amvescap’s options timebomb 5 Mar 2003 The AngloAmerican fund manager has issued buckets of options with relatively soft performance goals. Top managers are getting free shares too. The interests of internal and external shareholders look misaligned.
Bertelsmann fleeced Frere 5 Mar 2003 Swapping a chunk of RTL for a bit of Bertelsmann has lost Belgian billionaire Albert Frere 66% of his investment. And Bertelsmann's controlling Mohn family have good reason to want to depress the value of his stake in their company.
Orange should buy back minorities 5 Mar 2003 If minority investors aren't going to get a sniff of the extra cash flow via a dividend, Orange should buy their shares back. The mobile group's dash for cash is serving France Telecom's shareholders more than its own.