JAB takes gulp from 3G with Keurig-Dr Pepper deal 29 Jan 2018 The private group’s coffee-pod company is buying the soda and tea outfit, creating a drinks giant potentially worth over $30 bln. Having bought and then cut costs at Keurig, JAB and its partners can apply themselves to Dr Pepper. It’s reminiscent of the architects of Kraft Heinz.
Carrefour picks right rescue plan five years late 23 Jan 2018 After two profit warnings, the new boss of Europe’s largest retailer will invest 3 bln euros to fend off online competition, and pledged to cut costs. A partnership with Tencent may help its ailing China unit. But sweeping change will be tough, and Carrefour is far behind rivals.
ADM bite at Bunge would be meal of many courses 22 Jan 2018 A $30 bln-plus merger of the two grain traders would boost profit in an unhelpfully oversupplied market. It would, though, also give rival Glencore, regulators and farmers a chance to push their own recipes. A single, clean takeover isn’t likely – but a few smaller ones could be.
Nestlé fashions a more activist-friendly board 19 Jan 2018 The CEOs of Zara-owner Inditex and Adidas are among the Swiss giant’s proposed new heavyweight non-executives. Their e-commerce expertise will help steer efforts to sell more directly to consumers. They also pre-empt any move by activist Dan Loeb to install his own candidates.
Amazon HQ2 choices disappointingly undisruptive 18 Jan 2018 The e-commerce giant has cut the field for its second headquarters to 20 prime locations including Dallas, Atlanta and New York. Hundreds of cities hoped Amazon would think outside the box, but a desire for talent and a welcoming environment led it to the usual hot spots.
Carrefour’s bad news will come in threes 17 Jan 2018 Europe’s biggest retailer issued a second profit warning in five months on weaker sales. New CEO Alexandre Bompard will unveil his turnaround plan next week. With a need to ramp up online investment and cut back on hypermarket stores, notably in France, greater pain is to come.
Sugar-for-supplements swap will test Nestlé boss 16 Jan 2018 The KitKat maker is selling its U.S. candy arm to Ferrero for a sweet $2.8 bln to invest in products with better growth than junk food. But high valuations for alternatives like vitamin pills limit CEO Mark Schneider’s opportunities to make Nestlé a clean-living champion.
M&S held back by dowdy online look 11 Jan 2018 The high street retailer’s food and clothing arms met quarterly forecasts, but both have strategic issues. M&S could dearly use the 25 pct-plus online sales growth seen by smaller rivals like Boohoo.com. Its current measly 3 pct showing is exacerbating its other problems.
Domino’s CEO will take some topping 10 Jan 2018 The company’s stock fell 5 percent after turnaround guru Patrick Doyle said he would step aside in June. Doyle not only reshaped Domino’s, he also put a fat crust on the pizza joint's valuation. His successor might add value in a different way: by finding a buyer.
Sainsbury’s is proxy for UK retail’s split fate 10 Jan 2018 The Argos-owner’s food business had a better Christmas than its clothing and general merchandise. UK consumers, stung by high inflation, are spending less on non-essential items, but still need to eat. That means grocers are better able to pass on rising prices to customers.
Temperance is the new craft beer for drinks groups 28 Dec 2017 Health awareness and restrained young drinkers are driving demand for booze-free tipples. Growth in volumes of low-alcohol beer will outstrip traditional drinks fivefold next year. It’s a new source of expansion for global companies as the craft beer craze loses its froth.
Unilever and Nestlé will sidestep supermarkets 27 Dec 2017 The duo’s decade-high operating margins are being squeezed between grocers, who are bargaining harder on price, and new ways of shopping. Selling direct to consumers is one way to reach ambitious profit goals that were set to appease activists. But the strategy is risky.
Domino’s Pizza is 2018’s most unlikely tech stock 21 Dec 2017 True, there’s nothing high-tech about pizza. But the take-out chain also dominates the “last mile” that delivery companies covet. Its app-to-infrastructure model makes Domino’s a little bit Uber, and a little bit Amazon. Investors are already baking in some futuristic assumptions.
Asahi’s Tsingtao misadventure has one positive 21 Dec 2017 The Japanese brewer is selling 20 percent of its Chinese counterpart for $937 mln. The near-decade-long bet has not been time and money well spent. At least the sell-off suggests Asahi has sobered up and intends to focus on investments where it can exercise meaningful control.
Campbell M&A picnic deserves activist gatecrashers 18 Dec 2017 Even with synergies, the company’s $5 bln offer for pretzel maker Snyder’s is a financial stretch. Campbell might be a better target than buyer. Big family shareholders make opposition hard, but Elliott’s campaign against oil producer Hess shows insiders can’t get complacent.
KKR benefits from Unilever’s weight-loss drive 15 Dec 2017 The buyout firm is paying $8 billion for the consumer giant’s unloved margarine unit. Though sales are stagnant, hefty leverage and more focused managers should enable KKR to earn a healthy return. What’s less clear is why Unilever was unable to make those improvements by itself.
Campbell Soup risks over-salting its M&A recipe 15 Dec 2017 Pretzel maker Snyder's may be the next target for the U.S. food group, which splashed out to buy Pacific Foods earlier this year. The slow growth of salty snacks still beats what's happening with soup, but at $4 bln Snyder’s is expensive and unappetizing.
Control could justify tycoon’s pricey Saigon pint 15 Dec 2017 A $4.6 bln bid from Charoen Sirivadhanabhakdi for 51 pct of Sabeco, maker of Bia Saigon, relies on political influence and a pliable local partner. That might help the ThaiBev owner to skirt foreign ownership rules, and wring out efficiencies to stack up a frothy valuation.
Target needs more than Shipt to fend off Amazon 14 Dec 2017 The $34 bln retailer said it would buy the grocery-delivery platform for $550 mln. That’s a step in the right direction to leverage its brick-and-mortar shops in an online world. But the Minneapolis-based company will need to do much more to escape the Walmart-and-Amazon squeeze.
Tencent’s list of impulse buys looks worrying 12 Dec 2017 China’s gaming giant is mulling a foray into bricks and mortar via a 5 pct stake in a hypermarket chain. Apart from irritating rival Alibaba, this tie-up makes little strategic sense. Nor do earlier stakes in Tesla, Snap and Spotify. Tencent owes investors a better explanation.