Goldman shareholders vote for change 31 Mar 2004 A majority of Goldman s investors voted against its staggered board. The firm will likely comply with their wishes. Others should too. It's not just a boxticking issue. If directors are not annually reelected, new SEC shareholder access rules will be futile.
Deutsche Bank under fire over Vivendi buy-back 31 Mar 2004 The massive buyback undertaken after the September 11 attacks boosted Vivendi's stock but also contributed to its financial distress. Deutsche, Vivendi and the French market regulator which has astonishingly been raided by the French fraud squad must answer questions.
Standard Life looks a tough sell 31 Mar 2004 Europe's biggest mutual insurer is right to opt for a demutualisation. But in its current shape it will struggle to attract investors. The twoyear flotation timetable should give it time to reinvent itself if a bid does not put policyholders out of their misery first.
Rhodia plans E1bn rights and bond issue 31 Mar 2004 The troubled French chemicals company will put to rest liquidity concerns if it raises this amount. But massive share dilution and extremely attractive terms on the bonds will be necessary to tempt investors to subscribe.
France Telecom must rediscover Orange’s zest 31 Mar 2004 The group's new organisation makes sense on paper. But what about execution? Another CEO has left the mobile arm Orange without making great waves. And his replacement is little known.
EMI shares have caught up with events 31 Mar 2004 The music group's shares have had a remarkable run, thanks to good news on piracy and aggressive cost cuts. But given EMI's valuation, the shares may not have much further to climb.
Goldman stumbles on Telenor E980m block trade 31 Mar 2004 Telenor s shares closed at a 3% discount to the price Goldman reportedly paid for them, and the bank is still sitting on some stock. After taking losses on block trades in past months, the hope was that banks would rediscover pricing discilpline. But that hasn't happened.
Bertelsmann back on the acquisition trail 30 Mar 2004 Faced with sluggish growth in its core businesses, the German media giant doesn t have a lot of choice. Bertelsmann wants to spend about E2bn. It probably has room for more. But given its experience in the last M&A boom, it should be cautious.
Deutsche Telekom is massaging its accounts 30 Mar 2004 The group reported E10bn of "other" operating items in 2003. But the lion's share falls within its preferred normalised measure of profits. Granted, lots of the "other" earnings recur. Still, the accounting treatment is flattering profits in DT's fixedline operations.
Intesa secures Turkish bank with control discount 30 Mar 2004 Normally acquirers have to pay a control premium. But the Italian bank is getting control of Garanti Bank for a near 40% discount. This will assuage concerns about Intesa's expansion so soon after its previous foreign follies. But why are the Turks selling on the cheap?
Seat bond a test case for European junk 30 Mar 2004 The Italian directories group is testing the depth of the market with Europe s biggest deal and a highly risky one to boot. The terms on which Seat can raise money may influence when Autostrade comes to market and when the Benettons sell Autogrill.
Bulgari trounces earnings forecasts 30 Mar 2004 The luxury group managed to hack costs out of the business. Earnings rose by 21% in spite of a drop in revenues. With longsuffering watch sales expected to pick up this year, Bulgari looks geared to a recovery.
Swiss Life goes cap in hand for another SFr1.2bn 30 Mar 2004 The group's insurance subsidiary has not had success in selling its Banca del Gottardo. So it is selling the bank to the holding company. This is only an excuse for a third capital increase in two years.
Wembley bidding war kicks off 30 Mar 2004 US consortium BLB has trumped a recommended offer from MGM for the UK gaming firm with an 800p per share offer. But MGM has hit back rapidly by saying it may come back with an increased offer.
Premium UK retailers capitulate 29 Mar 2004 Sainsbury and Boots, which have long struggled against lowpriced competitors, have finally bitten the bullet and changed tack. While long overdue, this won't necessarily turn things round at either retailer.
Credit Suisse says it has up to 7 partners 29 Mar 2004 Perhaps it does but a deal would be messy and hard to pull off. And with the bank performing weakly, now may not be the best time.
BP plans to return excess cash to shareholders 29 Mar 2004 The oil major has based its investment projections on a prudent assumption for the oil price. And if oil prices are higher, it will return extra cash to shareholders. This discipline is admirable.
Low-cost airline wars open up an eastern front 29 Mar 2004 Both flag carriers and nofrills airlines are staking out positions in the eastern European air market. The race is on to clinch the firstmover advantage, especially in Poland.
Agnelli company has big value creation potential 29 Mar 2004 A partial liquidation of Ifil could narrow its 36% discount to the sum of its parts. But that's only true if the Agnellis don't blow the cash and treat minority shareholders fairly.
Aventis should call Paris’ bluff 29 Mar 2004 The FrancoGerman drugs group should invite Novartis of Switzerland into takeover talks. That would put President Chirac, who is backing a rival bid from Sanofi, on the spot.
EDF debt prices in government guarantee 29 Mar 2004 The French utility is set to lose government backing of its debt. But debt investors are still pricing in some sort of implicit guarantee considering the company s massive off balance sheet risk.
Infineon’s boss forced out by unholy alliance 26 Mar 2004 Ulrich Schumacher's leadership pushed the company through the tech bust in fine form. But his threats to move the company to another country gave workers and managers an excuse to dodge reform.
Credit Suisse restates 2003 profits 26 Mar 2004 The bank miscalculated profits at its insurance unit after accounting policy changed. This looks like a cockup, not anything sinister. But for a bank, the miscalculation is hugely embarrassing. Moreover, it will add to concerns over the incoming finance director.
J Sainsbury sells US arm, warns on profits 26 Mar 2004 The group is selling a good business in the US for £1.4bn and pouring about half of the proceeds into its floundering UK arm. But as the latest profit warning shows, betting on a UK turnaround is risky.
Tiscali sell-off looks overdone 26 Mar 2004 The Italian internet service provider has delayed results after the regulator probed changes in its goodwill accounting. This hardly counts as another Parmalat, but Tiscali still needs to give a convincing explanation for the change.
Bank of America needs to explain Parmalat deal 25 Mar 2004 The bank appears to have helped the Italian dairy group's Brazilian subsidiary sell equity at an inflated value. This deal exposed it to the risk of a big loss. Unless the financing was really debt in which case it wasn't adequately disclosed.
Opec in a bind 25 Mar 2004 Will they, won t they? The oil cartel is in two minds about whether to cut supplies at next week s meeting. That's because a skyrocketing oil price isn't helpful in the long run.
Paris plays with more subtle form of control 25 Mar 2004 Novartis has offered to be Aventis white knight if the French government remains neutral. But Paris has played the part of a clever prison guard beating up the white knight in private but leaving no official mark of its actions.
GPG in cheeky bid for De Vere stake 25 Mar 2004 The investor group says the UK hotels group is undervalued but it has launched a partial offer at market price. Investors should block its move. Letting GPG buy a controlling stake on the cheap isn't the best way to unlock value for all shareholders.
Italy should resist urge to over-regulate bonds 25 Mar 2004 In the wake of Parmalat, the government is proposing that underwriters guarantee corporate bonds. A better approach would be greater transparency over the use of the bond proceeds especially if they are used to retire bank debt.