Food & Beverages

Corona Capital: Wall Street blues, Grocers

4 June 2020

Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: Pandemic pain is filtering through to investment bankers, and grocers’ viral boost passes its sell-by date.

Corona Capital: Crisis loans, Jet fighting

3 June 2020

Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: Bank customers are no longer making a dash for cash, loan drawdowns suggest. Meanwhile, a U.S. block on Chinese passenger flights suggests domestic battles haven’t dimmed President Trump’s desire to make China pay.

Corona Capital: Bank fears, Payments M&A, Coal

2 June 2020

Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: A new U.S. regulator wants cities to reopen to prevent bank robberies. Western Union may bid for struggling rival MoneyGram. And the pandemic is hastening the decline of U.S. coal.

Corona Capital: Saving/not spending, Pandemic Pig

29 May 2020

Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: what to make of falling spending and the growing taste for meat alternatives.

JAB’s $23 bln coffee unit is priced to take away

26 May 2020

The investor is offering shares in JDE Peet’s at a decaffeinated 20% discount to Nestlé. Consumers stuck at home are giving packaged brands like Kenco a boost, but prices per cup can still grind higher when cafes reopen. Europe’s biggest float this year can brew a robust return.

Vegan boom is heading for a meat-fuelled bust

26 May 2020

Sales of animal product-free food soared in May, bumping up shares in the likes of Beyond Meat. Viral outbreaks at slaughterhouses suggest vegan supply chains are more durable. But as beef giant Tyson cuts prices and a slump looms, appetite for pricier foods could wane.

Meituan Dianping cooks up some tasty scraps

25 May 2020

Covid-19 hit China’s $83 bln takeaway-to-taxis company, whose quarterly sales fell 13%. The outlook is shaky, but more restaurants have signed up and new initiatives like contactless delivery should provide value longer-term. Merging Western peers are in comparative disarray.

Luckin spill will get China coffee war brewing

25 May 2020

The reeling chain once worth $12 bln is getting booted off the Nasdaq for fraud. Its brand might be toxic, but it has assets and ideas that Yum China, Tim Hortons and HeyTea could buy or adapt. Such deep-pocketed competitors may present a more formidable challenge to Starbucks.

Moscow finds oil and vodka make a poor cocktail

21 May 2020

The former owners of Yukos, the energy group founded by Vladimir Putin foe Mikhail Khodorkovsky, are going after the Kremlin by grabbing trademarks for brands like Stolichnaya. These won’t make up for their lost $57 bln but may give aggrieved investors some negotiating leverage.

Corona Capital: China on Wall Street, Wind power

20 May 2020

Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: U.S. senators want Chinese firms to share their audited accounts – or face being kicked off American stock exchanges. Plus: why wind energy is the key to an economic and social, as well as environmental, resurgence.

Diageo can go on India bender for virtual pittance

20 May 2020

The liquor giant has built up a 56% stake in $5 bln United Spirits, which accounts for almost a fifth of its global sales and is growing fast. With the virus hitting the Indian firm’s valuation, Diageo has a chance to buy out minorities - even if it might cost its dividend.

Corona Capital: Natural gas, Disney, Brazil

19 May 2020

Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: Investors are too optimistic about natural gas; theme-park veterans take key roles at Disney; and Sao Paulo’s idea of bringing forward holidays to improve social distancing proves confusing.

Uber-Grubhub’s big obstacle is delivery not price

18 May 2020

Some to-and-fro over value is normal in a potential merger. But for two money-losing companies with volatile stocks, financial tweaks are a second-order issue. The more critical question about combining their meal-delivery operations is whether antitrust watchdogs would block it.

JAB can go further to ease caffeine addiction

18 May 2020

At-home drinking has helped the group’s 25 bln euro coffee arm, JDE Peet’s, hold its value despite Covid-19. Listing a chunk will help pay down the unit’s debt. Still, JAB could sell further equity and use the money to build a portfolio less reliant on three big companies.

Delivery app dares Shanghai-to-New York IPO route

15 May 2020

Dada Nexus, backed by JD and Walmart, aims to raise $500 mln on the Nasdaq even as U.S. political backlash against Chinese companies intensifies. Luckin’s scandal raises fresh doubts, as do stock performances of recent debuts. And yet rival bourses are struggling to capitalise.

Uber-Grubhub may get stomachache from deal fuss

14 May 2020

A tie-up would create the top meal-delivery firm in major markets like New York, Boston and Chicago. Uber’s beefed up lobbying efforts might help federal approval, but even then state antitrust watchdogs may be concerned. It’s a tough taste test for the $57 bln ride-hailing app.

Corona Capital: Air travel, Starbucks

14 May 2020

Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: Airlines’ experienced hands offer warning; Starbucks begins dance with landlords.

Uber is Grubhub CEO’s answer

12 May 2020

Matt Maloney bemoaned excessive competition among food-delivery startups. The lockdown has helped, but it's still cut-throat. Now the $55 bln ride-hailing giant may buy Grubhub. That’s one way to solve Maloney's problem, provided price and antitrust thinking go his way.

Corona Capital: Payments M&A brawl, Endeavor

7 May 2020

Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: Payments firm Wex’s attempt to ditch a double deal for two UK rivals will face legal pushback and perhaps Elliott Management’s ire. Talent agency Endeavor’s 2018 Epic Games investment is starting to come in handy.

Indian tax hikes are perverse economic necessity

6 May 2020

Governments worldwide are handing out cash to prop up demand as lockdowns crush revenue. New Delhi, however, is raising taxes to contain deficits, upping levies on petrol as states slap charges on booze. India’s fiscal anxiety is acute, but others may follow after the crisis.