Netherlands

Blackstone cast-offs offer easy fit for Elliott

19 February 2019

The activist has snapped up a 6.1 percent stake in Dutch fund services group Intertrust. Its stock has languished since Steve Schwarzman’s private equity group listed it in 2015, due to disappointing margins. A cheap valuation means Elliott may not need to roll up its sleeves.

Farting cows can propel DSM higher

14 February 2019

The Dutch group’s feed supplements reduce bovine flatulence, a big source of methane emissions. That’s not yet on the market, but shows how DSM’s nutrients and chemicals can defy the economic slowdown. A robust balance sheet means it’s financially sustainable, too.

Heineken sets premium bar high for rival AB InBev

13 February 2019

The world’s two mega-brewers are aggressively wooing customers to pay up for higher-quality, and craftier, suds. The Dutch brewer’s full-year results suggest it’s managing the shift well despite - or perhaps because of - the increased heft of its $129 bln competitor.

Bad debts tarnish ABN Amro’s poster-child image

13 February 2019

The Dutch bank that became a byword for European finance’s post-crisis turnaround reported a slide in fourth-quarter profit as loan losses jumped. Despite robust annual returns, a share price drop is a reminder that investors won’t tolerate “one-offs” even from well-run lenders.

Apple’s Austrian roadkill looks like an M&A target

5 February 2019

Chipmaker AMS is being squeezed by the U.S. tech giant, its biggest customer. A heavy debt pile and rising investment needs have scuppered its dividend. With shares down 70 pct in six months, investors’ best hope may be a sale to a fellow Apple supplier, like STM.

Philips could be a tortoise to Healthineers’ hare

29 January 2019

The 31 bln euro Dutch medical tech group has a lower valuation and operating margin than its larger German peer. Steady growth and a Healthineers stumble could help it close the gap. Global ageing should lift both companies, though Philips has the greater recovery potential.

Apple suppliers have few tools to defy gravity

3 January 2019

The iPhone maker’s profit warning has hurt shares in European chipmakers like AMS. Apple can appease investors with buybacks or extra software revenue. But suppliers are in a bind. Any attempt to diversify means they will have plough cash into new ventures that may easily flop.

German takeaway truce delivers tasty value treat

21 December 2018

Delivery Hero is selling its German business to rival Takeaway.com for 930 mln euros. As with Uber's capitulation to Didi in China's car-share wars, it means an end to cutthroat competition in another gig-economy market - and relief for both companies' investors.

Shell’s climate pay gesture lacks thermostat

3 December 2018

Linking executive bonuses to carbon targets, as the $258 billion giant has pledged to do, should focus bosses’ minds. Yet the goals and sums involved are unclear, and the plan only starts in 2020. Investors can do more to hold energy groups’ feet to the fire on emissions.

GSK looks like a better seller than buyer

3 December 2018

The UK drug giant is acquiring cancer specialist Tesaro for $5.1 bln and offloading its Horlicks unit to Unilever for about the same amount. It’s a neat way for CEO Emma Walmsley to reshape GSK. But the purchase will take years to pay off – and is much riskier than hot drinks.

New Unilever CEO’s hard graft will come later

29 November 2018

Insider Alan Jope has the right skills to deliver the sound strategy that he inherits from Paul Polman. But a share-structure change that the consumer giant had to ditch may need be revisited. The big deals needed to boost slow growth will be harder to clinch with a dual listing.

EU sends mixed signals to scale-hungry corporates

27 November 2018

Commissioner Margrethe Vestager may wave through a Dutch mobile merger but not the Siemens-Alstom rail deal. One decision hints at flexibility in the EU’s antitrust thinking. Still, politicians hoping to build regional champions to counter the U.S. and China will be disappointed.

Shell deserves to check out of investors’ doghouse

1 November 2018

The UK energy group slightly undershot earnings forecasts but generated oodles of cash in the third quarter. That compensates for a bigger disappointment earlier this year. Unless oil prices dive, Shell should be able to invest as much as it needs while rewarding shareholders.

Unilever and Nestlé’s growth tests pricing power

18 October 2018

Higher prices helped the consumer goods giants boost revenue in the third quarter. Both need to keep charging more to offset rising costs. The risk is that price-conscious customers go elsewhere. It ultimately depends on whether the world economy can cope with higher inflation.

Louis Dreyfus showcases downside of being private

10 October 2018

The commodity trader’s dividends are a bigger proportion of net profits than rival Cargill. The latter is demonstrating that non-listed status and success are compatible. But the short-term needs of Margarita Louis-Dreyfus jar with those of the French company that she controls.

Unilever bows to corporate version of Brexit revolt

5 October 2018

The Anglo-Dutch group ditched a vote to move its head office to the Netherlands after UK shareholders rebelled. The saga shows the limits of the special treatment that large multinationals can ask from politicians. It also demonstrates what investors can do when they join forces.

Altice financial invention is born of necessity

4 October 2018

Patrick Drahi may sell part of his telecom group’s fibre broadband business, having recently offloaded some mobile towers. The cash could reduce debt and increase capex. But ceding control over investment decisions to private equity could undermine the business model over time.

Unilever should delay its head office vote

3 October 2018

A growing number of UK shareholders oppose the Persil maker’s choice of Rotterdam as its base. Postponing the vote would give investors more clarity on Dutch tax changes, and Unilever more time to spell out the benefits of the shift. Pushing ahead risks an embarrassing defeat.

Buyout pass-the-parcel hands BC Partners a present

28 September 2018

The investment group is buying a stake in a $3 bln European cable company from KKR. It’s a good deal, thanks to the seller’s desire to cash out. Private equity funds’ limited investment terms mean managers can’t always choose when to sell. Longer-life funds are one solution.

TomTom is risky option on carmakers beating Google

27 September 2018

The $2 bln navigation group may sell a sideline business a week after key customer Renault said it would use Google Maps. After the sale, TomTom would look cheap – unless the search giant wipes the floor with rival mapmakers. The U.S. group’s track record makes that a dicey bet.