Netherlands

Heineken tries its hand at conscious uncoupling

19 September 2017

The brewer’s second-largest investor, Femsa, has sold a stake worth 2.5 billion euros. A spat over Brazilian distribution was a hiccup in an otherwise successful relationship. Co-dependence in the lucrative Mexican market is a good reason for both sides to keep things friendly.

Consumer giants’ disclosure is near sell-by date

25 August 2017

Firms that make food and personal-care products are pouring money into startups and young brands. Unilever, the most acquisitive, has made 15 such deals since 2014. Yet they don’t give investors enough information to judge their dealmaking nous. It could be their loss.

Unilever can butter up price for margarine unit

18 August 2017

Private equity consortiums are reported to be circling the Anglo-Dutch giant’s spreads business. A bidding war and the rich price paid for Reckitt’s food brands may help Unilever pocket more money. But unappetising returns await any buyer who pays more than 7 billion pounds.

Elliott finds part-victory in Akzo defeat

16 August 2017

The U.S. activist failed to arm-twist the Dulux paint maker into a merger with PPG. The Dutch group has, though, committed to a full breakup and put two solid new members on the board. It’s a decent result for Akzo’s investors – although less than Elliott’s might have wanted.

Akzo and Elliott are trapped in a lose-lose battle

11 August 2017

The Dutch paint maker has won a legal victory over its biggest shareholder, which is trying to oust the chairman. The increasingly pointless fight is likely to drag on beyond September’s shareholder meeting unless new CEO Thierry Vanlancker can make both sides see sense.

Charter bid would be a deal too far even for Drahi

10 August 2017

Altice, controlled by French billionaire Patrick Drahi, wants to buy U.S. cable group Charter Communications. The $180 bln price makes a cash bid tricky. Altice could use its own stock too, but the group’s leverage and poor voting rights may deter Charter shareholder John Malone.

Unilever puts a high price on control

10 August 2017

The Marmite maker is paying up to 450 mln euros to buy back preference shares worth less than a third of that price. The premium reflects the securities’ outsize voting rights. Buying them out helps clean up Unilever’s complex share structure – and boost its takeover defence.

ABN Amro can profit from blissful domesticity

9 August 2017

A thriving Dutch economy and divestments helped the state-owned lender boost first-half net income by 82 pct year-on-year. CEO Kees van Dijkhuizen wants to grow small business lending and ABN’s international operations. Cost-cutting would provide a surer route to earnings growth.

Akzo adds new gloss to disdain for investors

25 July 2017

The Dutch paint maker has to convene an emergency meeting to formally appoint Thierry Vanlancker as the new CEO. Its timing is designed to prevent irate activists from forcing a vote on Chairman Antony Burgmans’ future. This is an ill-advised disregard for shareholder democracy.

Unilever is half way there on Kraft challenge

20 July 2017

The Marmite maker has cut costs faster than expected, reducing ad spend and paying less to its suppliers. Its 20 pct operating margin goal looks reachable. Yet with U.S. rival Kraft Heinz free to reprise its hostile bid next month, volume growth is too low for comfort.

Bond market breathes life into erstwhile zombies

17 July 2017

European investors are refinancing companies like Dutch retailer Hema that not long ago were trading at distressed levels. Such credits are enticing when central banks have squashed yields, and Europe’s economy is recovering. Markets are unlikely to remain so forgiving for long.

Elliott renews totemic siege of Dutch boardrooms

7 July 2017

The U.S. hedge fund has launched a new legal bid to dismiss Akzo Nobel chair Antony Burgmans. The move may not revive the Dutch group’s sale to PPG that Elliott wants. Yet after defeat in a separate case, it shows activist investors haven’t given up on the Netherlands just yet.

Altice discount a dubious buying opportunity

30 June 2017

A float of its U.S. arm has made the Dutch telco’s discount to the sum of its parts more visible. It’s a good time to invest in the parent if founder Patrick Drahi can succeed at running it more as an integrated group. Limited synergies and questionable governance raise doubts.

Philips deal healthier for patients than investors

28 June 2017

The Dutch healthcare equipment maker is buying loss-making US rival Spectranetics for more than 6 times next year's revenue in a $2.2 bln deal. Ramping up expertise in treating cardiac disease makes strategic sense, but the high price adds unhealthy financial side-effects.

IPO puts Altice USA’s best program behind it

22 June 2017

Bankers directed a flawless show for the public offering of the Dutch-based cable-TV company’s American business. Altice USA now trades at a higher multiple than Charter and Comcast yet has more onerous debt and no clear path to expand. Shareholders may want to change channels.

Akzo is emblem for new “fortress Europe”

1 June 2017

The Dutch maker of Dulux paint thwarted a generous 25 bln euro takeover attempt from U.S. rival PPG without putting forward a convincing financial defence. As European governments reach for more power to fend off unwanted mergers, Akzo has shown how shareholders can lose out.

Shareholders are best judges of PPG’s Akzo bid

30 May 2017

A Dutch court threw out activist Elliott’s attempt to force talks between the paint maker and U.S. suitor PPG. That still leaves the other option: for PPG to appeal directly to shareholders. The 25 bln euro price looks attractive, and there is little downside in going hostile.

Moody’s pays A-level price for B-scale acquisition

15 May 2017

At $3.3 bln, the credit-rating agency is paying a whopping 21 times EBITDA for financial-data publisher Bureau van Dijk. It broadens the portfolio, but both the cost savings and potential revenue uplift are small. At least Moody’s has a plan to keep its own balance sheet intact.

PPG might as well go hostile on Akzo

11 May 2017

It has little to lose by taking its $27 bln bid for the Dutch paint maker straight to shareholders. If Akzo invokes its poison pill, the deal falls away anyway. And if the U.S. suitor wins shareholder support, Akzo’s board will face enormous pressure to make the tie-up friendly.  

Shareholder battle weakens Akzo’s standalone case

9 May 2017

Activist investor Elliott is taking the Dutch paint maker to court in an attempt to oust chairman Antony Burgmans. Akzo’s defence against suitor PPG rests on its stock trading on a higher multiple after a corporate rejig. But bad governance could cancel out any upside.