Lazard limits fallout in Paris M&A meltdown 21 Oct 2019 Top dealmaker Matthieu Pigasse, head of the Wall Street firm’s French outfit, is leaving to set up a business “beyond investment banking”. At least he’s not joining or creating a direct rival. That gives boss Ken Jacobs a chance to stave off more departures as competitors circle.
Aussie engineer tugs too strongly on the flag 17 Oct 2019 A $5 bln oil services company wants the foreign-investment watchdog to stop a Middle Eastern investor from raising its stake. It’s an odd defence. Rules that let suitors creep up on their targets may have pushed WorleyParsons into a corner, but it sets an uncomfortable precedent.
Blackstone makes like a sea urchin in Japan 16 Oct 2019 The buyout shop wants to take over hotelier Unizo for $1.6 bln using an entity named after the local delicacy. Like the animal, the bid for the reluctant target is spiky. The deal also has a squishy appeal, with a rich premium for shareholders and tasty morsels for employees.
BYD could get China’s Tesla back on the road 2 Oct 2019 Nio is sputtering. Making snazzy rides for the world's largest market is burning up cash, and the $1.4 bln electric-car maker is now contemplating more cuts just to keep up. That could tarnish a shiny brand. Pooling with a more experienced peer, like BYD, may be a better option.
Baidu’s Ctrip sale leaves room for risky wandering 27 Sep 2019 The $37 bln web giant is offloading nearly a third of its holding in China's largest travel agency for $1 bln. Ctrip stock has shed over 30% since Baidu came in; still, thanks to an initial share swap, boss Robin Li can book a profit. Now he needs to spend on more than buybacks.
Altria-PMI deal could waft back into view 25 Sep 2019 A $187 bln merger between the cigarette companies was stubbed out by turmoil at Juul, in which Altria owns 35%. The market already suggests the vaping upstart is worth less than Altria paid. If it falls more, the logic of a combination could bring PMI back for another pull.
Hong Kong’s LSE bid conceals a shrewd Beijing view 25 Sep 2019 David Schwimmer, CEO of London’s bourse, says China is opening up. HKEX boss Charles Li has partly based a $34 bln pitch for his rival on the opposite. Experience suggests Li's diagnosis on capital controls is right. Whether his prescription is correct is another matter.
Facebook’s brain-computing goals are distant 24 Sep 2019 Mark Zuckerberg’s $533 bln social network is taking a step toward making computers even more omnipresent by purchasing CTRL-labs, a startup tapping nerve signals to control devices. It’s a little creepy, but it’s also a long-term spur for a company mired in near-term problems.
Fosun books early return flight from UK holiday 24 Sep 2019 Iconic travel company Thomas Cook collapsed after Downing Street declined a bailout, leaving hordes of tourists stranded. Fosun Tourism’s 450 mln pound rescue attempt, which might have salvaged its stake, stands abandoned. Shareholders in the Chinese company may feel the same.
Hong Kong’s first UK exchange foray clouds second 20 Sep 2019 Its 2012 takeover of the London Metal Exchange promised to preserve the institution and expand in China. Hong Kong’s bourse honoured the first, but Beijing made its own way in commodities. Returns have been poor too. That history informs its $37 bln London Stock Exchange bid.
DirecTV not the only thing AT&T ought to offload 19 Sep 2019 Boss Randall Stephenson’s $49 bln purchase of the satellite TV firm has been a flop. But hiving it off would address a symptom, not the cause. Stephenson defended DirecTV right through AT&T’s purchase of Time Warner. A thorough divestment plan would start with the CEO himself.
Dairy deal Down Under unlocks China prize 17 Sep 2019 State-backed Mengniu wants to buy Bellamy’s, a maker of infant formula, for some $980 mln. The premium looks frothy, and such tie-ups have soured before. But if local ties mean licences and an Aussie brand lures wealthy buyers, shareholders are right to bet on success.
China keeps trade war fire away from Wall Street 17 Sep 2019 Goldman Sachs wants a majority stake in its local joint venture. Beijing looks open to letting U.S. banks boost their presence despite tensions. Their lack of market heft means they don’t threaten local rivals, and China needs their support in the future.
Tencent jams pedal into battered China car market 16 Sep 2019 The tech giant and others have made a roughly $1.2 bln offer for comparison site Bitauto. That will in turn mean bidding for online retailer Yixin, which the target part-owns. It’s a cheap bet that may bring benefits in payments; acceleration will still require an auto recovery.
Hong Kong’s LSE bid suffers market credibility gap 12 Sep 2019 Shares in Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing barely budged in response to a bold $37 bln cash-and-share offer for its London rival. That could be a sign that investors like the combination. A better explanation is that they think it’s unlikely to happen.
Yahoo Japan pushes Zozo investors into new orbit 12 Sep 2019 The SoftBank-backed web portal offered $3.7 bln for control of the ailing fashion site. Zozo’s boss, who bought SpaceX’s first ticket to the moon, is tendering most of his stake. Other owners may want to sell too: Yahoo Japan recently trampled on minority shareholders elsewhere.
Chinese video-games takeover bid may start a trend 10 Sep 2019 Internet pioneer Sohu is offering to buy out minority investors in a U.S.-listed gaming subsidiary for a near-70% premium. The move looks opportunistic: the shares, hit by Beijing’s regulatory crackdown, are at less than half of a 2017 peak. Peers could lure bargain hunters too.
San Francisco’s PG&E bid has some faulty wiring 9 Sep 2019 The city is offering $2.5 bln for one of the bankrupt utility’s best assets. It might benefit Bay Area residents who effectively subsidize citizens in more fire-prone locales. But it would leave PG&E far less able to cope with future financial, political and environmental crises.
Elliott brandishes velvet-clad fist at AT&T 9 Sep 2019 The activist fund’s demands for the $270 bln U.S. telco are mild: Be leaner, stop doing deals, cut debt and improve governance. Missing, but worthy of discussion, is the idea of dethroning boss Randall Stephenson. The reticence may reflect that Elliott can’t fight this one alone.
Toyota and Suzuki make a virtue of cross-holdings 29 Aug 2019 The carmakers are buying small stakes in each other, four years after Suzuki ended a rocky ride with Volkswagen. Although such deals are being unwound across Japan, this one holds promise. It may pave the way for a deeper alliance in an industry increasingly dependent on scale.