Emerson settlement with Shaw would be win for both 30 Oct 2019 The clock is ticking for the hedge fund to start a proxy battle at the $44 bln conglomerate. Emerson needs a makeover, and D.E. Shaw wants to burnish its activist cred. A deal that shakes up the board and slashes fat without an immediate bust-up would be a victory for everyone.
Super Mario turbo-charges case for Sony breakup 29 Oct 2019 Shares of $45 bln Nintendo have gained 30% this year, partly thanks to a mobile hit featuring its iconic plumber. A richer valuation should also be an inspiration to sprawling rival Sony. Separating its video-games and entertainment business could be one way to narrow the gap.
AT&T’s brush with activism creates four winners 28 Oct 2019 The $270 bln U.S. telecom plans to raise margins, add directors and sell assets, and it only took a nudge from Elliott. Both sides look smart, and investors gain too. So do shareholders in other companies: AT&T’s plan to split chair and CEO roles helps them to ask for the same.
Cable cowboy joins Swiss circular firing squad 22 Oct 2019 John Malone’s sale of his Alpine cable outfit UPC is off after an investor revolt at its suitor, Sunrise. The erstwhile buyer has to swallow a 50 mln euro exit charge and misses the chance to challenge peer Swisscom. The Liberty Global boss’s M&A halo gets a bit of a dent.
Emerson Electric is only half as bad as Shaw says 16 Oct 2019 The $42 bln conglomerate sports crummy governance, excess fat and a retro penchant for private jets. But there are good reasons the market hasn’t bought into relative newcomer to activism D.E. Shaw’s argument that a breakup would unlock $20 bln of value.
Lagardère shoots the messenger and its own foot 14 Oct 2019 The $3 bln Paris-based conglomerate wants 84 mln euros in damages from activist Amber Capital for destabilising its share price. Lagardère had been doing a good job of that on its own via its ropey strategy. Suing its third biggest investor and change agent smacks of desperation.
Japan displays puzzling signs of hubris 11 Oct 2019 Tokyo wants sharper scrutiny of foreign investment. Like this month’s consumption tax hike, the measure could hurt growth. Little wonder the stock exchange chief calls the latest idea "idiotic". Once again official conservatism threatens to derail a tentative economic recovery.
Japanese hotelier’s M&A door may be prised open 11 Oct 2019 Unizo’s long list of spurned suitors includes Blackstone, a SoftBank-owned group, and more. Activist fund Elliott is right to question the company’s opaque handling of takeover interest. This little-known $1.4 bln company will be a test case for Japan’s new investor hospitality.
BHP and shareholders share green lobbying dilemma 11 Oct 2019 Aberdeen Standard and others want the world's largest miner to cut ties with business groups opposing Paris climate goals. BHP is reviewing its memberships, but argues change can be promoted within the industry too. It's a quandary familiar to fossil fuel investors.
Mediobanca’s new activist has oddly retro ideas 10 Oct 2019 Luxottica eyeglass emperor Leonardo Del Vecchio wants the $9 bln Italian lender to beef up its investment bank, defying the finance lessons learned since 2008. CEO Alberto Nagel’s push into wealth management is serving shareholders well. Del Vecchio is pushing a losing bet.
Banks’ green torpor will leave shares stuck in mud 4 Oct 2019 Half the world’s top 50 private lenders lack commitments to sustainable financing. Those that do make them too vague for useful comparisons between peers. As climate risks rise, banks like JPMorgan that give far more funding to fossil fuels are cruising for an investor bruising.
EBay CEO exit sends warning call to AT&T boss 25 Sep 2019 Devin Wenig is leaving months after Elliott Management politely persuaded the $32 bln online marketplace to sell assets and improve operations. The activist investor has launched a similar campaign against the $273 bln telecom firm. The outcome could be the same.
Sony’s activist defence is only semi-convincing 17 Sep 2019 The $75 bln Japanese entertainment conglomerate rejected a call from Dan Loeb’s Third Point to spin off its chips business. The long-term case for keeping it is fuzzy but this may not be the best time for separation. It’s harder to support Sony holding onto its finance unit.
Benettons’ credibility on the line in road fiasco 16 Sep 2019 The $20 bln infrastructure group accounting for half the wealth of one of Italy’s top dynasties is sinking deeper into a probe linked to a deadly bridge collapse. The damage risks infecting their shirts-to-motorways empire. Replacing Atlantia’s boss would be too little too late.
Viewsroom: Nissan’s car-crash CEO 11 Sep 2019 Hiroto Saikawa is stepping down amid controversy over his pay. It has implications for the company’s rocky Renault alliance, and by extension for the French carmaker’s recent attempt to merge with Fiat Chrysler. Plus, is activist Elliott Management going soft on AT&T?
AT&T tilt can transform Elliott as well 9 Sep 2019 Paul Singer’s hedge fund beat Argentina and forced out Arconic’s ex-boss, earning a reputation for ruthlessness. AT&T, its bluest of blue-chip targets yet, is a new frontier. Getting the telecom giant to cooperate could make Elliott part of the high-finance establishment.
Elliott brandishes velvet-clad fist at AT&T 9 Sep 2019 The activist fund’s demands for the $270 bln U.S. telco are mild: Be leaner, stop doing deals, cut debt and improve governance. Missing, but worthy of discussion, is the idea of dethroning boss Randall Stephenson. The reticence may reflect that Elliott can’t fight this one alone.
Climate-activist investors are due for a new dive 3 Sep 2019 Treating and moving water can account for 20% of energy use. And many companies are ignoring the risk to their operations of too much or too little of the liquid, judging by a recent industry conference. That presents fertile ground for pushy stock- and bondholders.
UK building supplier adopts Peltz’s American dream 3 Sep 2019 Ferguson plans to spin off its British unit and focus on the United States, as suggested by the activist. Trading more in line with U.S. peers should boost shares in the 14 bln pound group. But UK-based holders could make moving the primary listing to New York a tough project.
Hotelier bidding war may be Japanese wakeup call 3 Sep 2019 Travel agent H.I.S. ended its unsolicited tilt at Unizo, ceding to SoftBank-owned investment firm Fortress. The unusual hostilities for Japan helped the target’s stock price more than double. This deal, enabled by wider reforms, suggests more value could be hidden in plain sight.