Pandora adds green polish to its lab-diamond bet 28 May 2021 The $13 bln Danish trinket maker is switching to all synthetic stones, a move driven more by profit than sustainability. Man-made rocks can be 90% cheaper than natural ones, putting them in Pandora’s mass-market ambit. The reduced carbon footprint adds some millennial sparkle.
Capital Calls: Klarna, Dan Loeb, Fashion IPO 28 May 2021 Concise views on global finance: The Swedish “buy now, pay later” group’s possible $50 bln price tag may leapfrog rivals Afterpay and Affirm; the corporate agitator deserves a taste of his own medicine; About You’s mooted 3 bln euro valuation implies a discount to rivals.
Richemont’s perfect match has luxury price tag 27 May 2021 The $58 bln Cartier owner has been talking to rivals. A tie-up with a peer like Kering makes more sense than gobbling up smaller players, but would require boss Johann Rupert to give up control. With the business going strong, he is in as good a position as ever to strike a deal.
Chinese buyer can put spring back in Reebok’s step 26 May 2021 Owner Adidas thinks Anta Sport and Li Ning, as well as private equity firms, may bid for the ailing brand, worth maybe $1.8 bln. Buyout barons have scored big apparel wins. But a red-hot domestic market means Chinese groups are best-placed to succeed where the German firm failed.
Ray-Ban maker may finally live up to merger vision 24 May 2021 EssilorLuxottica has ditched a power-sharing pact that ushered in the 2018 deal but led to infighting. Axing duplication should allow the 63 bln euro group to deliver long-promised cost savings. Erasing the governance discount to listed peers could unlock 10 bln euros of value.
Capital Calls: Disney misses the mark 13 May 2021 Concise views on global finance: Walt Disney reported nearly 104 million subscribers for its streaming flagship service.
Capital Calls: U.S. CEO pay 12 Apr 2021 Concise views on global finance: The median big-company boss is ending up with $13.7 mln for the 2020 pandemic year, a payout that's heading for a record.
Capital Calls: Cellebrite good times 8 Apr 2021 Concise views on global finance in the Covid-19 era: The Israeli cracker of mobile-phone encryption is going public via a SPAC at a $2.4 billion valuation.
H&M kicks off Europe’s unfashionable China dilemma 25 Mar 2021 The $35 bln Swedish retailer is under sudden attack over an old statement saying it doesn’t source materials from controversial Xinjiang. Many EU companies want both greater access to the giant market and ESG credibility. Beijing will make it choose which is the bigger priority.
Fashion’s supply ignorance is no longer bliss 17 Mar 2021 The U.S. is detaining products containing cotton produced in China’s Xinjiang region over forced-labour concerns. The burden of proof is on the importer, so groups like Inditex and Ralph Lauren need to know the fibre’s origins. Or some goods may fail to reach American shelves.
Capital Calls: New York, Allegro exit 17 Mar 2021 Concise views on global finance in the Covid-19 era: The Big Apple reigns in a new ranking of global cities, but the prize isn’t what it was; shareholders in Polish e-commerce group Allegro sell down early.
Capital Calls: Netflix, ECB, Glass Lewis, Zalando 16 Mar 2021 Concise views on global finance in the Covid-19 era: The streaming service’s password-sharing crackdown twists the knife; the central bank worries about identifying bad loans; the proxy adviser’s sale underscores its place on Wall Street; the online fashion giant’s bold targets.
Capital Calls: T-Mobile US, Ulta Beauty 12 Mar 2021 Concise views on global finance in the Covid-19 era: The U.S. telecom is benefiting from its merger with SoftBank’s Sprint; the U.S. cosmetics retailer revealed a tidy succession plan, but its business still faces lingering pandemic side-effects.
Capital Calls: McKinsey, Celebrity SPACs 10 Mar 2021 Concise views on global finance in the Covid-19 era: McKinsey’s new boss isn’t new enough; the SEC tells investors to be careful of celebrities bearing SPACs.
Capital Calls: Exxon, Greensill, Research SPAC 2 Mar 2021 Concise views on global finance in the Covid-19 era: U.S. securities regulators take on the oil giant; Investors in even lower-risk funds get nervy about the supply chain finance provider; And a supplier of picks and shovels to the online trading boom gets a blank-check listing.
Capital Calls: Pharma, Volvo delay, Hotels 24 Feb 2021 Concise views on global finance in the Covid-19 era: Big Pharma’s new popularity could give it leverage in Congress; China’s Geely can profit from Volvo IPO delay; and boutique hotels feel the heat.
Capital Calls: Petrobras 19 Feb 2021 Concise views on global finance in the Covid-19 era: Brazil's president becomes Petrobras' activist.
Capital Calls: Third Point, Kraft Heinz/Hormel 11 Feb 2021 Concise views on global finance in the Covid-19 era: Dan Loeb’s hedge fund gets a good start in 2021, while Hormel Foods buys peanuts, but pays anything but.
Corona Capital: Food delivery, Video games 25 Jan 2021 Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: Hedge fund Tiger Global gets a taste for food-delivery investments; and Jagex, developer of fantasy game “RuneScape,” is flipped to Carlyle less than a year after its last sale.
Burberry is entering the M&A danger zone 20 Jan 2021 The UK maker of fancy trench coats performed worse than most peers during the pandemic. Despite some positive signs, investors are attributing little value to CEO Marco Gobbetti’s turnaround plan. A cheap valuation and lack of dominant shareholders could entice cash-rich peers.