Hedge funds upset with Moviles buyout 30 Mar 2006 Telefonica has won a recommendation from Moviles for a sweetened E3.4bn offer to buy out minority investors. Hedge funds expected sweeter terms, given Telefonica s history of coughing up in deals. But their scope to create trouble now looks limited.
Ferrovial wins Macquarie backing for BAA bid 29 Mar 2006 That s bad news for the UK airports operator. Not only does it make it more likely that the Spanish will go ahead with a firm offer. But it also removes a potential rival bidder. Even so, Ferrovial still has to raise its bid substantially if it is to stand a chance.
How Goldman can square ITV circle 29 Mar 2006 The Goldman consortium will have to offer cash as an alternative to its dividendcumstub equity offer to win over the UK TV group s board. But it then risks everybody taking cash, leaving it to write a much bigger cheque. It s possible but not easy to square the circle.
Restatements imperil GMAC sale 29 Mar 2006 Selling a majority stake in GM s finance unit was proving to be tough as it was. Now GMAC is restating three years of financials. That could scare off bidders. Or it could force down the price. A sale is looking increasingly troubled.
GUS finally limbers up for the splits 28 Mar 2006 After a lengthy wait, the UK group is finally demerging its retail and creditchecking divisions, Argos and Experian. Listing the units separately won t make them less tempting to private equity. But this way, investors are more likely to get a fair price.
Temasek’s £2bn stake raises Standard Chartered’s defences 28 Mar 2006 The emerging markets bank looks a less likely target with the Singaporean fund on board. Temasek is probably in for the longterm. Its deep pockets may help Standard do deals itself. But the bank should be wary of cosying up too much to the stateowned fund.
European M&A wave doesn’t spark Wall Street exodus 28 Mar 2006 The last time Europe boomed like this, firstclass lounges at JKF airport were crammed with investment bankers catapulting into the action. That s not the case this time around, largely because Europe has been structurally overstaffed for some time. Now it s pulling its weight.
Market shrugs off potential AB Ports bid 27 Mar 2006 The news was hardly surprising. After all, the ports operator is the only sizable UK infrastructure asset left to buy. But will the rumoured £2.3bn materialise? There s not much to do at ABP. And infrastructure investors have been stingy lately.
Alcatel should be wary of acquiring Lucent 24 Mar 2006 The last time the French and US telecom kit makers tried to merge in 2001, they failed because they couldn't agree who would run the group. This time it is more clear. It's easy to see why Lucent would sell itself. The question is should Alcatel buy a company that is still weak.
Arcelor considers Dofasco poison pill – WSJ 24 Mar 2006 The embattled steel group may try to stop Mittal from selling on Dofasco, a Canadian group Arcelor has just acquired, to ThyssenKrupp. Such a scheme would make a mockery of Arcelor s claims that it is acting in shareholder interests rather than just trying to block Mittal.
GM closes commercial mortgage sale to KKR 23 Mar 2006 By selling a 78% stake, GM s finance unit captures $1.7bn of cash. That s helpful, but it s just a fraction of GMAC s book value. This piece of GMAC was always going to be the easy sell. The GMAC auction is still troubled. Death by 1000 cuts is still not averted.
British Airways partly grasps £2bn pensions deficit nettle 23 Mar 2006 BA s plan to boost contributions and cut benefits will plug much of its whopping pension gap but not completely close it. So its ability to pay a dividend or upgrade its fleet has now improved but by how much is still not clear.
ITV approach too greedy 23 Mar 2006 Goldman will need to inject more capital or leave existing shareholders with more of the equity if its scheme is to fly. Particularly as ITV could gear itself up, find a new boss and even look for a white knight.
Bayer’s E16bn bid for Schering looks like a winner 23 Mar 2006 The German conglomerate is acting as Schering's white knight. Its bid of E86 per share trounces Merck's hostile offer of E77. Merck will be hard pressed to beat this offer. Bayer has greater synergies with Schering than Merck does.
ITV would have ceded control for sellable deal – exclusive 23 Mar 2006 The UK broadcaster s board might have accepted a deal that locked in the consortium for longer and offered a cash alternative. These demands don't look wildly onerous. Charles Allen is pretty lucky to survive.
Sanpaolo shouldn’t be tempted by ho-hum merger 22 Mar 2006 The E29bn Italian bank should be engaging in a vigorous costcutting takeover of one of its smaller rivals. But that's not its style. The worry is that, out of a desire to avoid being bought by big shareholder Santander, it might instead go for a lowimpact merger with MPS.
Arcelor shouldn’t sell minority stake to Russian oligarch 22 Mar 2006 Reports that Russia s third richest man, Vladimir Lisin, wants a 15% stake in the Luxembourg steel company are faintly worrying. If he buys in the market, fine. But if Arcelor sells him shares, that could block Mittal s hostile bid, hurting other shareholders.
Endesa shouldn’t take Gas Natural to court 22 Mar 2006 There's no point. Gas Natural's bid has been trumped by E.on's far higher bid. Indeed, the lawsuit may actually put that bid in jeopardy. The Endesa board may conclude it s not worth the risk.
Goldman, Blackstone and Apax try to nab ITV on the cheap 22 Mar 2006 By taking a £1.5bn stake in the UK broadcaster and gearing up, private equity would effectively control ITV without paying a premium. Sure, investors would get to ride on the coattails of private equity. But the alternative is to do it themselves.
Enel bid may flounder through lack of political support at home 22 Mar 2006 The Italian centre left, which is likely to take power next month, now seems at best lukewarm about Enel making a hostile bid for Suez. If Enel's board postpones a decision on whether to bid until after the April elections, that may be the end of its ambitions.