EasyJet packs M&A reserve chute into safety plans 9 Sep 2021 The low-cost carrier is raising $1.7 bln from shareholders after another virus-hit summer. That, plus a $400 mln loan facility, gives CEO Johan Lundgren a plump cushion if the recovery stalls again. If all else fails, ambitious budget rivals like Wizz Air are poised to pounce.
Business travel fixes risk grounding recovery 27 Aug 2021 The $1.4 trln industry of selling expensive plane tickets and hotel rooms to itinerant executives faces a bleak future as firms like HSBC slash travel budgets. Making ordinary customers pay more would bolster margins. But raising prices may also dampen an already slow revival.
Capital Calls: Cook defeats Apple crumble risk 24 Aug 2021 Concise views on global finance: The CEO replaced the ailing Steve Jobs exactly 10 years ago. Despite fears at the time, Cook’s must be one of the most lucrative successions of all time for shareholders.
Capital Calls: Oatly, Sonos/Google 16 Aug 2021 Concise views on global finance: The Swedish oat milk producer’s decent results are only good in parts; Sonos gets a boost with a preliminary trade ruling that Google infringed its patents.
Capital Calls: Brookfield, Macquarie 9 Aug 2021 Concise views on global finance: An insurance wing of the Canadian financial empire may bring a dash of risk to a conservative Texan insurer, while Australian investment bank Macquarie has snapped up a stake in British utility Southern Water.
TPG-backed vacation deal is a worthy destination 29 Jul 2021 One of the private equity firm’s SPACs is merging with Vacasa in a $4.5 bln deal. The firm helps owners list and manage their vacation properties including on Airbnb. The management is experienced, the concept is solid and Vacasa could be a strategic fit for others down the line.
Branson space caper may have airline economics 16 Jul 2021 The British tycoon has lined up punters paying $250,000 each for his sub-orbital joyride. To hit profit targets, though, his Virgin Galactic needs to hike prices as rivals lift off. If it can’t, the $8 bln firm’s financial trajectory may resemble loss-making Virgin Atlantic.
European airlines’ CO2 pleas deserve cold shoulder 16 Jul 2021 Trade body IATA is moaning about EU plans to curb emissions by making jet fuel more expensive. Ideas that may add 3% to operating costs over several years aren’t a grounding order. And most of the changes would merely remove existing freebies to align aviation with other sectors.
European SPAC booking offers uncertain reward 15 Jul 2021 Vacation rental company HomeToGo will go public through a deal with blank cheque vehicle Lakestar, the first in Germany. The 1.2 bln euro valuation isn’t greedy, and the structure is more friendly than some U.S. peers. Still, investors are making a bold punt in a crowded sector.
Chinese duty-free giant’s share sale is well timed 13 Jul 2021 China Tourism’s Hong Kong secondary listing plan spotlights the $90 bln company’s unique strengths. State ties help, as do favourable policies in tropical getaway Hainan. Hefty proceeds will give it a war chest to expand overseas and challenge rivals like Switzerland’s Dufry.
Capital Calls: U.S. jobs, Fitness IPO 7 Jul 2021 Concise views on global finance: U.S. employment vacancies tip scales towards workers; Mark Wahlberg-backed F45’s IPO values it at twice what an attempted SPAC deal did last year, justifiably.
Wizz Air CEO’s 100 mln pound bonus is aptly remote 6 Jul 2021 Jozsef Varadi’s payday could be even bigger than Michael O’Leary’s at rival Ryanair if his airline’s shares nearly treble. Linking such a big reward to stock performance looks crude but the target implies a fourfold revenue jump. Even Varadi can’t sustain that steep a climb.
Capital Calls: It sure feels good to be a banker 1 Jul 2021 Concise views on global finance: Global deals in the first half of the year broke all records.
Vaccine passports are a patchy travel fix 1 Jul 2021 European Union passes went live on Thursday. But even within the bloc there are quibbles over standards and risks from viral variants. At a global level, rifts are amplified. Even with a central authority and consensus on approved jabs, governments can impose their own curbs.
Getlink’s Brexit blues may have happier M&A ending 25 Jun 2021 The $9 bln Channel Tunnel operator has been hit by travel curbs and reduced UK-France trade. Shares a fifth below pre-Covid peaks don’t reflect recovering traffic flows or duty-free sales. A decades-long concession increases the appeal to yield-hungry infrastructure funds.
Capital Calls: Platinum Equity, FTC chair, Tui 16 Jun 2021 Concise views on global finance: The buyout firm acquires textbook company McGraw Hill and the maker of Singer sewing machines; Joe Biden’s pick for the Federal Trade Commission brings swagger; and another capital hike will still leave the German holiday group heavily indebted.
The Exchange: IAC Chairman Barry Diller 15 Jun 2021 The media mogul has backed businesses ranging from travel to gambling to dating and more. Plus, he’s behind Little Island, a new park in New York. Diller shares his thoughts on the reopening of the world, IAC’s unique model and why Netflix has already won the streaming war.
Capital Calls: Corporate America blowback 15 Jun 2021 Concise views on global finance: An investor lawsuit against Trump-era rules on shareholders' proposals is the latest sign of the tables turning.
Capital Calls: Airbus signals liftoff, Bill Gates 27 May 2021 Concise views on global finance: The global aircraft industrial complex got a boost after the European plane maker said it hopes to churn out more of its A320 short-haul workhorses per month than expected; Microsoft founder’s huge private investment vehicle under scrutiny.
India’s Oyo Hotels tidies for new overseas guests 27 May 2021 The SoftBank-backed budget-lodging aggregator wants to borrow $600 mln to refinance debt. Using an offshore syndicated loan suggests a restructuring is working and courts potential IPO investors. For now, Oyo also dodges the issue of how far its peak $10 bln valuation has fallen.