Green bonds could slide into irrelevance 17 Sep 2020 Securities used to finance environmentally friendly investments are thriving, with everyone from JPMorgan to Germany charging in. Yet the $800 bln market does not necessarily mean greener issuers. As investors get better at differentiating, green bonds could become redundant.
Icahn can’t push VW too much on Navistar bid 17 Sep 2020 The U.S. truck company in which the activist holds 17% wants Volkswagen to raise its $4.3 bln bid. Savings potentially worth almost as much mean the automaker run by Herbert Diess can pay more. But falling sales and cash outlays mean shares could fall sharply if the Germans walk.
Cox: When ’shrooms go public, markets are peaking 17 Sep 2020 Compass Pathways, which treats depression with a psilocybin-based compound, is raising $107 mln. It has no revenue. Its risk factors are like a bad trip. But as investors throw cash at blank-cheque firms promising visions of the future, taking a punt doesn’t seem so risky.
Corona Capital: Newspaper rivals, College football 17 Sep 2020 Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: the Wall Street Journal hits up the New York Times’ printing presses; U.S. college football’s Big Ten makes a comeback.
Unibail’s self-bailout highlights property dilemma 17 Sep 2020 The shopping mall owner plans to raise $4 bln from investors and flog buildings worth nearly $5 bln. Bolstering its balance sheet protects its credit rating even if real estate values fall further. But the rescue depends on buyers and shareholders taking a less gloomy view.
Natixis split could create a European BlackRock 17 Sep 2020 The $8 bln French lender has suffered trading losses and blowouts at its asset management arm. New CEO Nicolas Namias needs to fix these and sever the investment bank. If he can, the funds business could be worth $11 bln and create a tasty potential partner for Amundi or UBS.
Toshiba’s chip IPO could short-circuit 17 Sep 2020 Two years after the Japanese company's crown jewel was sold to a Bain-led group, the rebranded Kioxia will list at a $20 bln valuation. It offers a partial exit to the U.S. buyout firm and other backers. But aiming for a premium multiple amid choppy markets may backfire.
Snowflake takes IPO hubris into the stratosphere 16 Sep 2020 Shares in the data-warehouse firm, already the biggest U.S. public listing of the year, more than doubled in early first-day trading. At about $80 bln, the money-losing firm is worth some 200 times trailing sales. It’s an apt expression of the panicked greed gripping investors.
TikTok deal rings alarm on M&A reviews 16 Sep 2020 The ByteDance unit hopes to avoid a sale by partnering with Oracle. It hardly amounts to the clean break Donald Trump demanded. The politicking muddies the already challenging process for investments with foreign involvement. It makes cross-border deals that much more difficult.
Facebook will have to grow the hard way 16 Sep 2020 U.S. regulators may file an antitrust lawsuit against the $775 bln firm. The threat has a chilling effect on Facebook’s ability to snap up the next hot thing in social media. To keep up with changing tastes, Mark Zuckerberg is going to have to transform the company from within.
Beauty IPO is risky test for UK governance retreat 16 Sep 2020 The Hut Group’s shares soared after a $7 bln float. The skincare and clothing retailer’s fast growth meant investors shrugged off shaky voting rights and a watered-down listing. Its success opens the door for others, if founder Matthew Moulding can grow into his rich valuation.
Nikola is not built to drive in public markets 16 Sep 2020 U.S. law enforcers are looking under the $12 bln wannabe zero emissions-vehicle maker’s hood after a short seller accused founder Trevor Milton of fraud. Who's right or wrong is unclear, but the company's response has been ham-fisted. Nikola's SPAC-mediated listing was premature.
Corona Capital: Fed’s optimism, Package holidays 16 Sep 2020 Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: Jay Powell and crew at the U.S. central bank reckon the nation’s economy is doing better, just, than they expected; Anglo-German travel company TUI may raise 1 bln euros as the virus whacks new bookings.
UBS-Credit Suisse deal would be too clever by half 16 Sep 2020 The former’s Chairman Axel Weber may be mulling a merger with his Swiss rival. The banks’ similarities mean annual savings could exceed $3 bln. Yet capital buffers may rise and wealth clients flee. Closer cooperation on asset management and investment banking makes more sense.
China Evergrande stands to win a price war 16 Sep 2020 Unwritten credit rules circulated by Beijing have prompted the $29 bln property developer to offer discounts of 30% or more. That will eat further into profit and make it harder to cut debt. The aggressive gambit by Chairman Hui Ka Yan may, however, cripple the competition.
Unity Software diversifies its IPO options 15 Sep 2020 The maker of software for creating video games is floating this week at a valuation up to $11 bln. It is trying an unusual auction process which could mean less money is left on the table than is typical and Unity has more control. The idea may only work for big-name issuers.
Big price for trains just about stays on track 15 Sep 2020 Blackstone’s infrastructure group may be offering what looks like top dollar – $20 billion – for Kansas City Southern, a 133-year-old U.S. freight railroad. But with interest rates so low, big prices for relatively predictable assets with stable returns may become the new normal.
Klarna’s new $11 bln valuation looks a stretch 15 Sep 2020 The Swedish buy-now-pay-later startup’s new funding round means it has doubled its worth in a year. That looks reasonable relative to rival Afterpay’s market valuation. It looks less so once you use multiples that better reflect competition and regulatory risks.
Cox: Bernard Arnault is acting like a spoiled brat 15 Sep 2020 Europe’s richest man had to have Tiffany when times were good and agreed to pay too much for the American jeweller. When Covid-19 hit the fan, LVMH’s boss got buyer’s remorse. Now he's throwing all the toys out of his cashmere-lined crib to get his way. Which he probably will.
Corona Capital: Kraft Heinz, U.S. poverty 15 Sep 2020 Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: The food giant is boosting advertising outlays, even as it continues cutting costs; and the poverty rate in the United States hit a low at the end of 2019, according to new data, only to run into a Covid reversal.