Couche-Tard may be impulse buyer after French fail 21 Jan 2021 Founders of the minimart empire, blocked from buying Carrefour, have a super voting share that expires in 11 months. After that they’d need investor support for a big purchase like German grocer Metro. The 13% drop in the Canadian group’s stock shows fears of a short-term spree.
Carrefour’s merger blues need retail therapy 19 Jan 2021 The $15 bln grocer’s shares are in the bargain bin after the French executive blocked a deal with Canada’s Couche-Tard. A sale of its Brazil unit could give investors a boost, but leave a rump in a challenged market. Buying Gallic rival Casino is CEO Alexandre Bompard’s best bet.
France’s Carrefour defence targets wrong enemy 14 Jan 2021 Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire opposes a possible $20 bln takeover of the grocer by Canada’s Alimentation Couche-Tard. He’s right to worry about jobs and supply chains after Covid-19. But a new owner would still need French cashiers, while suppliers are better protected by law.
Canada’s pump giant tries cheeky French till dash 13 Jan 2021 Quebec-based Couche-Tard is eyeing supermarket chain Carrefour. There’s little overlap, but supermarkets may offer the $37 bln petrol station operator a hedge against an electric vehicle boom. The target’s depressed share price means its shareholders are unlikely to play ball.
UK security M&A battle will get bloodier 9 Dec 2020 Allied Universal agreed to pay 3.8 bln pounds for prison operator G4S. Canadian rival GardaWorld now faces getting drawn into a lengthy bidding war. Yet the U.S. group’s 245 pence per share price offers a high 10% return. That means the target’s shareholders can hope for more.
GardaWorld opens door for G4S escape 2 Dec 2020 The Canadian security firm raised its bid for the UK group to 3.7 bln pounds, having argued much less was fair on Monday. The new price is hardly a knockout either. CEO Stephan Cretier’s erratic handling of the offer and a possible counterbid give investors reason to hold out.
RSA should finally tie knot via latest altar visit 5 Nov 2020 Five years after a union with Zurich Insurance fell through, the UK insurer has a 7.1 bln pound offer from Canadian and Danish suitors. RSA will grab an all-cash bid that comes with a 50% premium. The buyers’ need for fat synergies will discourage counter-proposals.
Canada peer offers G4S cheeky get-out-of-jail card 14 Sep 2020 BC Partners-owned Garda World may offer 3 bln pounds for the UK prison operator and outsourcer. That’s below the target’s price before Covid-19 closed airports and hit live events. But given its likely slow recovery and patchy track record, shareholders may prefer a surer thing.
Alstom can drive a hard bargain on Bombardier 10 Aug 2020 The French train maker hinted it will reassess an $8.2 bln buyout of its Canadian rival’s unit following surprise losses. A 20% price cut would allow CEO Henri Poupart-Lafarge to make an economic return. EU consent for a deal and Bombardier’s high debts strengthen his hand.
Gold’s enduring high gives miners room to be bold 10 Jul 2020 Bullion has breached $1,800 per ounce amid fears of a viral surge. Mine bosses’ enthusiasm to develop lower grade reserves that only make sense at exalted price levels is usually dampened by worries of a sharp snapback. An extended Covid-19 tail means more will take the chance.
The Exchange: Bruce Flatt 16 Jun 2020 The office is not dead, though hot-desking may be. The elevator needs a rethink. And don’t rule out the shopping mall. Brookfield Asset Management’s chief executive made these and other predictions for the post-pandemic global economy in a recent chat with Breakingviews editors.
Cirque du Soleil deal needs contortionist skills 10 Jun 2020 Creditors want to take control of the acrobatics company. The company required a reboot even before Covid-19 forced shows into hiatus in March. The pandemic has made it even harder to value. But with other high-wire deals getting done, Cirque’s show is likely to go on.
Spurned Caltex can do some refining on its own 21 Apr 2020 Canada’s Couche-Tard abandoned its $5.5 bln plan to buy and break up the petrol station operator because of the pandemic. The Australian company’s mooted property spinoff looks like a poor consolation prize. It would make more sense just to proceed with the suitor’s blueprint.
Corona Capital: Cirque du Soleil, Airlines, France 27 Mar 2020 Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: Cirque du Soleil may leave TPG sunburnt. Airlines get a sweet bailout. And France joins the campaign against dividends.
World will be ready for some 2021 Olympic spirit 24 Mar 2020 It’s likely the Summer Games won’t go on as planned in Tokyo. Cancelling would be a defeat, but rescheduling for next year a symbol of resilience. By then, an economic recovery should hopefully be under way and global audiences will be drawn more than ever to the Olympic flame.
Quarantine hits home for Canada’s Trudeau 18 Mar 2020 The border with the U.S. is closing. The Canadian prime minister – himself in Covid-19 isolation – also unveiled a fiscal aid package worth about 3.6% of GDP, way short of, say, the UK’s response to the pandemic. As everywhere, though, it’s a down payment on an unknown price.
Frère hands minorities two carrots and one stick 12 Mar 2020 GBL, the holding company of Belgium’s Frère and Canada’s Desmarais families, wants minorities to swap shares in its parent for shares in itself. The catch is the families get double voting rights. The appeal is the offer looks reasonable and the new structure could create value.
Alstom’s M&A detour has lower chance of derailment 17 Feb 2020 The French train maker is paying $6.7 bln for Bombardier’s locomotive unit, after its preferred deal with Siemens was blocked. Bulking up can counter the threat of China’s CRRC. Success hinges on punchy synergies and a green light from the sticky antitrust signal box in Brussels.
Central banks help widen Brookfield’s moat of cash 13 Feb 2020 The Canadian asset manager’s client funds rose to $545 bln. Ultra-low interest rates help two ways: by pushing investors into alternative investments and inflating the value of assets like real estate. Its advantage will be tough for most rivals to overcome.
Alstom-Bombardier rail M&A would face faulty track 22 Jan 2020 The $11 bln French train maker and its Canadian rival are discussing a deal, Bloomberg reported. The former’s failed deal with Siemens posed more obvious EU antitrust issues, but Brussels may still balk. And synergies that rely on big job cuts in France will be politically toxic.