Haagen-Dazs cash may melt in Nestlé’s pocket 11 Dec 2019 The Swiss giant is selling its U.S. ice cream unit to a joint venture with buyout firm PAI for $4 bln. A big dollop of debt gives the $312 bln group a taste of private equity returns. After his second big disposal this year, CEO Mark Schneider might be tempted to splash out.
Xerox overplays a weak hand with HP 9 Dec 2019 The photocopier maker has laid out its detailed case for buying HP for $33 bln, but ambitious cost-saving goals are of little use if its much larger rival isn’t interested. A genuinely hostile bid would be illogical even if it were possible. Xerox risks looking desperate.
Just Eat offer is taster for Christmas food fight 9 Dec 2019 Internet investor Prosus sweetened its cash bid for the UK food delivery company to $6.5 bln. That’s tastier than rival Takeaway.com’s all-share proposal, but still well below Just Eat’s market value. Shareholders are expecting a few more helpings before the end of the year.
Osram hedge-fund latecomers face a rude awakening 9 Dec 2019 Austria’s AMS has won its battle for the German lighting group, after receiving sufficient backing from the latter’s army of speculators. Even more hedge funds are betting that quirky domestic M&A rules will help them secure a higher exit price. But that wager could yet go wrong.
Tesco leaves Asia with a full cart 9 Dec 2019 Britain's biggest grocer may sell its business in Thailand and Malaysia. Thai peer Central Retail should list at a rich valuation, making it a good time to exit before regional economies cool further. The likes of prior owner CP Group could put $9 bln in Tesco’s pocket.
Swiss Re swallows pride with $4.2 bln UK castoff 6 Dec 2019 The Zurich-based insurer will sell its British business to rival Phoenix at a valuation similar to its cancelled public listing. CEO Christian Mumenthaler had few other options. Given the threat of Brexit, foregoing a takeover premium is a price worth paying for a cleaner sale.
Moncler offers costly fix for Kering’s Gucci habit 5 Dec 2019 The French fashion conglomerate run by Francois-Henri Pinault may buy Remo Ruffini’s 11 bln euro puffer jacket maker. A deal would help Kering diversify away from its largest brand, but likely at a rich price. And extracting value from a company already at its peak would be hard.
Gold diggers may find growth is copper-bottomed 5 Dec 2019 Rising prices have filled coffers for bullion miners. Now some, like $31 bln Barrick, are arguing future growth may come from a more modest metal: copper. Using safe-haven returns to bet on a similar, underperforming, material has logic, despite tarnished M&A precedents.
Macron should score rare hat trick in Peugeot deal 4 Dec 2019 The coming merger with Fiat allows public lender Bpifrance to sell a $1.1 bln stake in the carmaker and triple the government’s money. That would allay investor fears about an overbearing French state and give President Emmanuel Macron more ammo to help entrepreneurs.
Murky Hudson’s Bay deal is as good as it gets 3 Dec 2019 A bid from an insider with majority backing always puts a company’s board through its paces. Directors of the owner of retailer Saks got their chairman to raise his offer by 11% to $1.4 bln. Yet although it’s the most deliverable deal, they could have pushed harder for the best.
Huge biotech M&A premiums narrow perception gap 3 Dec 2019 Astellas’ $3 bln deal for Audentes is the fifth 100%-plus premium in the sector this year. Market pessimism is making targets cheap, notably in speculative areas like gene therapy. But buyers are having to pay up to convince sellers they’re not surrendering at fire-sale prices.
Italian dynasties swap roles as newspaper saviours 3 Dec 2019 Fiat scion John Elkann is mimicking Jeff Bezos and Marc Benioff in acquiring a struggling editorial trophy, La Repubblica-owner GEDI, from the De Benedettis. Whether Elkann, who part-owns The Economist, can revive GEDI is hard to say. But the billionaire has the resources to try.
Osram M&A traps hedge funds in prisoner’s dilemma 3 Dec 2019 Speculators now own up to 45% of the German lighting group. If they can be enlightened enough to work together, there’s a way to make would-be acquirer AMS pay more than $5 bln. But if they revert to self-interested type, the deal will fall through and they will all lose money.
Carl Icahn just needs any Xerox-HP deal 2 Dec 2019 The smaller copier group where the activist owns 11% says it will go hostile with its $33 bln offer for HP. The bickering aside, it would be more logical for HP to buy Xerox. That could turn out much the same for Icahn, who owns 4% of HP, and for both companies’ other owners.
Man City adds scrappy player to financial roster 27 Nov 2019 Silver Lake is buying about 10% of the Premier League club's owner, valuing the global soccer conglomerate at an eye-popping $4.8 bln. Victory on the pitch won’t be enough to satisfy the buyout shop’s investment goals. That may take winning in streaming, e-sports and even China.
Merger Monday is cold comfort in longer M&A slump 26 Nov 2019 Deals from LVMH, Novartis, Charles Schwab and peers added up to an impressive-looking $70 bln. Yet 2019 transactions volumes are lower than last year, despite record stock markets, and M&A valuations are falling. Trade wars and growth fears have to ease for a sustained pickup.
Canada’s Aussie gas station bid needs more fuel 26 Nov 2019 Quebec-based Couche-Tard has offered $7.3 bln including debt for Caltex to expand its filling station empire Down Under. At more than 9 times EBITDA the price looks good, while rival bidders are scarce. A mooted real estate IPO is Caltex’s best hope to squeeze out more value.
Market pours cold water on M&A animal spirits 25 Nov 2019 Schwab and copier maker Xerox are touting respective deals worth a combined $59 bln, but grand claims of value creation aren’t showing in share prices. For Schwab, customers may end up sharing the extra profit, while the Xerox deal on the table is unlikely to happen at all.
Maybe eBay should rebrand as a VC fund 25 Nov 2019 The $29 bln firm is a shadow of Amazon in e-commerce, but selling StubHub for $4 bln shows prowess at incubating a business acquired for less than a tenth of that. Off-loading its classified operations could be similarly successful. And eBay’s biggest gains have come from PayPal.
LVMH can use Bulgari as model for Tiffany revamp 25 Nov 2019 The French luxury house has paid $16.2 bln to secure its U.S. jeweller rival. The final price tag is not too fanciful compared to past bling deals, but LVMH will still need to apply a lot of polish to make it stack up. Its past success at Bulgari gives much comfort.