The Daily Deal articles from August 2002

The Daily Deal archives from August 2002

Over the hedge.
August 1, 2002... Byline: Stephen Taub What's Martha's next move? That's the big question surrounding the doyenne of domesticity now that shares of Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia Inc. have been halved to around $8 since she was swept up in the...

Country Road gets $32M.
August 1, 2002... Byline: Tyson Freeman Even opportunistic investors aren't touching much of the depressed telecom sector now. But smaller, family-owned rural phone companies, with their stable revenues, have fallen in price and are emerging as takeover...

VC education solid in Q2.
August 1, 2002... Byline: Clifford Carlsen Despite producing many of the worst offenders of the dot-com bust, the education sector is seeing a healthy comeback in venture capital investment, posting a 370% increase in funding in the second quarter over the...

Armor Holdings purchases Trasco.
August 1, 2002... Jacksonville, Fla., body armor maker Armor Holdings Inc. said Wednesday that it has agreed to buy bankrupt German armored vehicle supplier Sachsenring Fahrzeugbau GmbH for about [Euro]5.7 million ($5.6 million). Bremen, Germany-based...

Comdisco set to emerge from bankruptcy.
August 1, 2002... Comdisco Inc.'s final reorganization plan has been approved, allowing the Rosemont, Ill., technology equipment leasing company to emerge from bankruptcy during the week of Aug. 12. Comdisco said Wednesday that creditors, who overwhelmingly...

Crown Cork & Seal completes sale to Nampak.
August 1, 2002... Philadelphia packaging products maker Crown Cork & Seal Co. has completed the $23.5 million sale of its Central and East African packaging interests to South African rival Nampak Ltd. Crown Cork's operations in Zambia will not be part of the...

Derma Sciences acquires Dumex.
August 1, 2002... Princeton, N.J., medical products maker Derma Sciences Inc. said Wednesday that it has agreed to buy privately held Toronto rival Dumex Medical Inc. for about $3.76 million. The purchase price will be financed by a combination of available...

Entergy closes $180M Vermont Yankee plant buy.
August 1, 2002... New Orleans utility Entergy Corp. said Wednesday it completed the purchase of the Vermont Yankee nuclear plant in Vernon, Vt., from a group of utilities for $180 million. The deal was announced in August 2001. Entergy threatened to walk away...

Grupo Imsa takes Spain's Lightfield.
August 1, 2002... Mexican construction company Grupo Imsa SA de CV said Wednesday that it has acquired reinforced fiberglass panel maker Lightfield SA from Spanish rival Grupo Uralita SA for [Euro]10.6 million ($10.4 million). Lightfield, Europe's second-largest...

Investors go after Liquid Audio.
August 1, 2002... Activists continue to pound on ailing Internet music software company Liquid Audio Inc. Jonathan Brooks, managing partner of JMB Capital Partners L.P., and other investors called for a halt to Liquid's business along with a distribution of the...

Ireland's Elan discloses more of recovery plans.
August 1, 2002... Troubled Irish pharmaceuticals maker Elan Corp. Wednesday gave further details of a recovery plan to cut costs and regain investor confidence. The company said it plans to raise $1.5 billion by the end of 2003 through unspecified divestments,...

Italy solicits bids for its Mediocredito stake.
August 1, 2002... Italy's Economics Ministry on Wednesday asked for bids on its 34% stake in credit institute Mediocredito del Friuli-Venezia Giulia SpA. Societe Generale is advising the ministry on the sale and expects all bids by Sept. 16. The institute...

Nice Systems gets Thales unit.
August 1, 2002... Israeli digital and multimedia products supplier Nice Systems Ltd. announced Wednesday that it would purchase the Thales Contact Solutions division of French electronics maker Thales Group for about $55 million in cash and stock. Thales Contact...

Wells Fargo grabs Nelson Capital.
August 1, 2002... Wells Fargo & Co. announced Wednesday that it is acquiring Nelson Capital Management Inc., a privately held Palo Alto, Calif., investment adviser, for an undisclosed sum. Nelson Capital concentrates on the Silicon Valley area. -- Greg Johnson...

Judge OKs Montgomery Ward reorg plan.
August 1, 2002... Byline: Soma Biswas Judge Raymond T. Lyons approved a reorganization plan for Montgomery Ward & Co. which gives creditors the green light to pursue a $1 billion lawsuit against the retailer's parent, GE Capital Corp., at a hearing...

AurionGold says no to Placer Dome.
August 1, 2002... Byline: Laura King TORONTO -- Australia's AurionGold has rejected a sweetened, A$1.5 billion ($810 million) unsolicited takeover offer by Canada's Placer Dome Inc., claiming the cash-and-shares bid is too low and warning shareholders to...

Elektrim, creditors agree.
August 1, 2002... Byline: Patricia Koza WARSAW -- Creditors of Poland's Elektrim SA agreed Wednesday, July 31, to a debt-restructuring plan that calls for a sale of the telecom-and-energy conglomerate's most valuable asset, Elektrim Telekomunikacje Sp. z...

Primedia sells Chicago to Tribune.
August 1, 2002... Byline: Peter Lauria Primedia Inc.'s stock price jumped 22.6% Wednesday, July 31, on news of second-quarter results that exceeded guidance and the $35 million sale of Chicago magazine to a subsidiary of the Tribune Co. While its...

Rabobank grabs California's VIB.
August 1, 2002... Byline: David Weidner In a first foray into U.S. retail banking, Dutch banking giant Rabobank Groep agreed to buy California's VIB Corp. for $213 million in cash, the companies said Wednesday, July 31. The deal represents a 9.4%...

HSBC eyes U.S. expansion.
August 1, 2002... Byline: Peter Moreira LONDON -- Another year, another HSBC Holdings plc merger rumor. In 2001, speculation was rampant that HSBC, Britain's largest bank, would try to buy Merrill Lynch & Co. in the U.S. Now, the spotlight has shifted...

Expedia spread a head-scratcher.
August 1, 2002... Byline: Scott Stuart See today's Arbitrage situations chart. The proposed offer by USA Interactive for Expedia Inc. has apparently ceased to weigh down Expedia's share price. Expedia's special committee indicated last month that...

Advisers scrambled for IBM-PwC.
August 1, 2002... Byline: Olaf de Senerpont Domis in San Francisco When the hordes of outside legal and financial advisers who were toiling to prepare PricewaterhouseCoopers Consulting for its upcoming public offering were told that IBM Corp. was likely to...

Alltel completes two phone business deals.
August 2, 2002... Little Rock, Ark., telecom Alltel Corp. announced Thursday it has completed purchases of local phone businesses in Kentucky and wireless businesses in six states. The move added about 1.3 million new customers for Alltel. The telecom said it...

Alnylam Pharmaceuticals.
August 2, 2002... Boston-based Alnylam Pharmaceuticals, a provider of RNA interference-based therapeutics, has raised $17 million total in Series A and B financing. Polaris Venture Partners, ARCH Venture Partners and Atlas Venture led the deals. Cardinal...

Chantry Networks.
August 2, 2002... Mississauga, Ontario-based Chantry Networks Inc., a wireless area network component maker, said Thursday it has raised $5.7 million in first-round venture financing. The funding was led by Ventures West. Other investors include Venture Coaches...

Eclyptic.
August 2, 2002... Austin Texas-based Eclyptic, a developer of network management software, has closed a first round of funding for $5 million. Austin Ventures led the round with participation from other private investors. Funds will be used for product...

FIS Software.
August 2, 2002... Tel Aviv-based FIS Software Ltd. has raised $9 million in a third round of financing led by Israel's Genesis Partners and including Giza Venture Capital. The deal came at a $40 million post-money valuation. Founded in 1984, FIS provides...

Gerhard Schmid loses round to France Telecom.
August 2, 2002... Gerhard Schmid, the founder and 40% shareholder of German wireless telecom MobilCom AG, said Thursday he would appeal a ruling by Germany's financial regulator that France Telecom SA doesn't have to buy him out. Under German law, investors in a...

Herbalife International purchase is completed.
August 2, 2002... An investor group led by private equity firms Whitney & Co. LLC and Golden Gate Capital said Thursday that their $685 million acquisition of Los Angeles-based Herbalife International Inc. was completed. The investor group financed the $19.50...

ING taking 19.2% Bital stake.
August 2, 2002... Netherlands-based ING Groep NV said Thursday it has agreed to acquire a 19.2% stake in Mexican retail bank Grupo Financiero Bital SA for [Euro]200 million ($196 million) in cash. The companies signed a memorandum of understanding in March....

Intuit sells Quicken Loans mortgage business.
August 2, 2002... Mountain View, Calif., software maker Intuit Inc. said Thursday it completed its sale of its Quicken Loans mortgage business to a management-led group for about $30 million. The buyer is a group led by Dan Gilbert, chairman of Quicken Loans and...

Marconi in advanced talks with Finmeccanica.
August 2, 2002... British telecommunications equipment maker Marconi plc confirmed Thursday that it is in advanced negotiations to sell its Genoa, Italy-based Strategic Communications unit to Italian defense and aerospace group Finmeccanica SpA. In addition,...

NextMark.
August 2, 2002... Hanover, N.H.-based NextMark Inc., a provider of direct marketing automation software, has received an equity investment to complete a Series B round. The funding was led by Venture Capital Fund of New England and also included CEI Ventures,...

NuVasive.
August 2, 2002... San Diego medical device maker NuVasive Inc. has raised $15 million in fourth-round funding from Johnson & Johnson Development Corp. and existing investors William Blair Capital Partners, CDP Capital Technology Ventures (formerly CDP-Sofinov),...

Omega Worldwide being sold.
August 2, 2002... Omega Worldwide Inc., a provider of investment advisory services to healthcare businesses in Europe and the Pacific Rim, said Thursday that it has agreed for rival Four Seasons Health Care Ltd. to buy it out. The transaction is valued at about...

Roper Industries buys three.
August 2, 2002... Roper Industries Inc., a Bogart, Ga., maker of specialty industrial controls, said Thursday it acquired three companies for a combined $63 million. Roper said it paid $26 million in cash and assumed $30 million in debt to buy Zetec Inc., an...

SciVantage.
August 2, 2002... New York-based SciVantage Inc. said Thursday it closed its first round of venture funding, helping the software company expand its sales and staffing. Greenlight Private Equity Partners LP led the round for an amount the company declined to...

Shell to purchase joint venture.
August 2, 2002... Anglo-Dutch oil giant Royal Dutch/Shell Group has agreed to buy the half it doesn't already own in its Hamburg joint venture, Shell & DEA Oil GmBH. It will make the purchase from German utility RWE AG for $1.35 billion a year ahead of schedule....

The Aftermarket.
August 2, 2002... Phoenix-based telesales firm The Aftermarket said Thursday that it has raised $5.5 million in debt and equity from Petra Capital Partners of Nashville, Tenn. and Silicon Valley Bank. The money will be used to expand AfterMarket's call capacity...

United Utilities sells U.S. water unit.
August 2, 2002... United Utilities plc of the U.K. and its San Francisco partner, Bechtel Enterprises Holdings Inc., agreed Thursday to sell their North American water services unit, U.S. Water LLC, to United Water Resources Inc. for $40 million in cash. United...

Centis' M&A binge leads to bankruptcy.
August 2, 2002... Byline: Greg Johnson Like many companies, Centis Inc. went on a buying spree when times were good. But when the binge ended, indigestion set in. The privately held Brea, Calif.-based supplier of office products and storage and display...

Thornburgh named WorldCom examiner.
August 2, 2002... Byline: Chris Nolter The U.S. Trustee for Region 2 on Thursday, Aug. 1, selected Richard Thornburgh, a former U.S. attorney general, to be the examiner in WorldCom Inc.'s Chapter 11 proceedings. Thornburgh, counsel to Washington,...

APW out of bankruptcy.
August 2, 2002... Byline: Terry Brennan and David Carey >Private equity firm Oaktree Capital Management LLC owns roughly 45% of APW Ltd. after the maker of enclosures for electronics and telecom products emerged from its two-month bout with Chapter 11...

Bill seeks bankruptcy revamp.
August 2, 2002... Byline: Jaret Seiberg in Washington Legislation introduced Thursday, Aug. 1, would strip Delaware and New York of their dominant roles in corporate bankruptcies by requiring insolvent companies to file in the judicial districts where they...

Buffett throws Williams a lifeline.
August 2, 2002... Byline: Claire Poole Until Thursday, it was a widely accepted truth that Williams Cos. Inc. would soon declare bankruptcy. Laboring under massive debt and slashed credit ratings, the company searched in vain for bank loans to guarantee its...

American Home Patient gets interim cash.
August 2, 2002... Byline: Terry Brennan Highly acquisitive healthcare provider American HomePatient Inc. won court approval to use interim cash collateral and pay critical venders in first-day motions Thursday, Aug. 1, in its Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing in...

Layoff roundup: week ended Aug. 1.
August 2, 2002... Byline: David Ehrlich Yes, there were more cuts in the telecommunications sector. But instead of beating that dead horse, let's look across the Atlantic to Europe where companies are also in the midst of restructuring, including...

Lukoil yanks London offer.
August 2, 2002... Byline: Nicola Hobday LONDON -- Despite being the first Russian company to list shares on the London Stock Exchange, Russia's largest oil company, OAO Lukoil, abruptly pulled the sale of a 5.9% stake in the company Thursday, Aug. 1. ...

Israel to float Leumi stake.
August 2, 2002... Byline: Neal Sandler in Tel Aviv In a major policy shift, the Israeli government intends to sell part of its stake in the country's No. 2 lender, Bank Leumi, on the stock market, rather than dispose of its entire holding in the bank to a...

eBay retrenches, sells Butterfields.
August 2, 2002... Byline: Eric Young in San Francisco With its sale of Butterfields Auctioneers Corp., Internet auctioneer eBay Inc. is taking a step back from traditional bricks-and-mortar commerce. The move also suggests that eBay will forgo a bid for...

JDS to sell Cronos at loss.
August 2, 2002... Byline: Joshua Jaffe JDS Uniphase Corp. swiftly followed up on last week's promise to restructure its entire business with an announcement Thursday, Aug. 1, that it would sell its Cronos microelectromechanical systems division to France's...

Deals Interrupted - Aug. 2, 2002.
August 2, 2002... Byline: Gerald C. Magpily A deal's announcement is just the beginning of a long, tortuous process. Legal challenges, alternate bids and internal dissent are just some of the land mines that lie between a merger's inception and its...

Malone gets FT's Casema.
August 2, 2002... Byline: Brian Cattell LONDON -- The rearguard action France Telecom SA is fighting against its crushing debt pile continued Thursday, August 1, as the company unveiled a deal to sell Dutch cable operator Casema BV to John Malone's...

Pension funds form real-estate venture.
August 2, 2002... Byline: Jonathan Berke The suddenly active real estate arm of the Government of Singapore Investment Corp. said Thursday, Aug. 1, that it is teaming with Canada's premier pension fund, CDP Capital, to make pound sterling400 million ($623.6...

Kirch Media has seven bidders.
August 2, 2002... Byline: Jonathan Braude Seven consortia have put in bids for Kirch Media GmbH & Co. KGaA, German media mogul Leo Kirch's bankrupt film and TV rights trader and free-to-air TV holding business, the company announced Thursday, August 1. ...

Icahn sweetens Shelbourne bid.
August 2, 2002... Byline: Jonathan Berke Carl Icahn regained the upper hand Thursday in his battle with Michael Ashner over a 30% interest in three Shelbourne Properties companies. The companies are actually being liquidated, so the Icahn-Ashner fight...

Omnicare sues to block NCS merger.
August 2, 2002... Byline: Andrew Morse Spurned suitor Omnicare Inc., whose bid to purchase NCS HealthCare Inc. failed earlier in the week, said Thursday, Aug. 1, it had initiated a lawsuit to prevent the struggling drug-services provider from merging with...

Conoco spread bounces along to September close; Conoco spread bouncing along to September close.
August 2, 2002... Byline: Scott Stuart See today's Arbitrage situations chart. The close of Phillips Petroleum Co. and Conoco Inc.'s $15 billion merger of equals is expected to slip into September, though sources do not expect complications in the tail...

Private Capital Briefcase - Hicks, Muse, Tate & Furst.
August 2, 2002... Byline: George White www.TheDeal.com

Cambria Media Ventures bids for Freedomland.
August 2, 2002... Byline: Heather O'Brian in Milan MILAN -- London-based private equity fund Cambria Media Ventures LP has teamed with Italian businessmen Mario Mutti and Mario Carlo Ferrario to make a [Euro]13 ($12.78) per share bid for 100% of Italian...

Capital Calls -- Aug. 2, 2002.
August 2, 2002... Byline: edited by John E. Morris One month after the junk bond market began its retrenchment in June, Caxton-Iseman Capital Inc. pulled off a feat of financial wizardry, completing a $525 million leveraged recapitalization of Buffets Inc....

Parthenon recaps Arrow Financial.
August 2, 2002... Byline: Kelly Holman The San Francisco office of Parthenon Capital said Thursday, Aug. 1, that it has completed a recapitalization of Arrow Financial Services LLC through a $45 million investment in the Niles, Ill.-based company. ...

Middle-Market Monitor.
August 2, 2002... Byline: Byline Here July 30, 2002 Systech Retail Systems restructuring Toronto-based Systech Retail Systems Inc., which develops software for retailers, said Tuesday it is planning a restructuring, under which it will convert $95...

A bridge too far?
August 2, 2002... Byline: John E. Morris Private equity firms have been gobbling up Europe this summer. The question now is whether their banks will get indigestion. In six weeks starting in mid-June, 10 leveraged buyouts over [Euro]500 million ($489...

European LBOs in the Summer of 2002.
August 2, 2002... www.TheDeal.com

Lee, partners weigh QwestDex.
August 2, 2002... Byline: Josh Kosman and David Carey A private equity consortium led by Thomas H. Lee Partners is still interested in buying Qwest Communications International Inc.'s directories business but is racked by concerns of a potential Qwest...

PG&E: Warburg back on board.
August 3, 2002... Byline: Eric Young SAN FRANCISCO -- Despite a recent setback in court, California utility regulators said they have struck a deal with investment bankers that revives a proposal to lift Pacific Gas and Electric Co. from bankruptcy. ...

Creditors soon to meet with WorldCom.
August 3, 2002... Byline: Chris Nolter The official committee representing WorldCom Inc.'s unsecured creditors will have their first face-to-face meeting with the company in the next few days. Daniel Golden of Akin, Gump, Strauss, Hauer & Feld LLP, who...

Ziff extends deadline again.
August 3, 2002... Byline: Peter Lauria Ziff Davis Media Inc. extended the deadline Friday, Aug. 2, for bondholder consent to a financial restructuring plan designed to keep the technology publisher from seeking bankruptcy court protection. Holders of...

HSR early terms - Aug. 1, 2002.
August 3, 2002... Byline: Jaret Seiberg The Federal Trade Commission said that it does not have antitrust objections to a deal between Equifax Inc. and CBC Companies Inc. Also receiving early termination notices under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Act are: ...

Celestica in talks to buy Agere assets.
August 3, 2002... Byline: Sarah Cohen Celestica Inc. is negotiating to acquire Agere Systems Inc.'s Breinigsville, Pa., optoelectronics manufacturing plant and associated intellectual property for $300 million to $500 million, according to a source with...

Market could still surprise Carnival, P&O.
August 3, 2002... Byline: Scott Stuart See today's Arbitrage situations chart. Since reports surfaced that the European Commission was ready to approve Carnival Corp.'s hostile bid for P&O Princess plc, the spread on the deal has narrowed sharply. ...

M&A Calendar - Week of Aug. 5, 2002.
August 3, 2002... Byline: Gerald C. Magpily www.TheDeal.com

Epiq rounds out software line.
August 3, 2002... Byline: Soma Biswas Epiq Systems Inc., a Kansas City, Kan.-based company that makes software used by bankruptcy trustees, will acquire the bankruptcy services division of Trumbull Services LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of The Hartford...

Kao buys U.S. hair products maker.
August 3, 2002... Byline: Charles Smith TOKYO -- Japan's top household products manufacturer, Kao Corp., said its recent $450 million purchase of John Frieda Professional Hair Inc. will precede more acquisitions in the U.S. and Europe. The Tokyo-based...

Judge upholds E.ON injunction.
August 3, 2002... Byline: Jonathan Braude A German court Friday upheld a temporary injunction blocking utility giant E.ON's [Euro]10 billion friendly takeover of the nation's largest gas company, Ruhrgas. A spokeswoman for the Dusseldorf High Court said...

Finmeccanica hits a double.
August 3, 2002... Byline: Heather O'Brian MILAN -- Italian defense and aerospace company Finmeccanica SpA announced Friday, Aug. 2, it has reached separate agreements to acquire military-communications telecom company Marconi Mobile Holding SpA and...

Celeritek board considers Anaren offer.
August 3, 2002... Byline: David Shabelman SAN FRANCISCO -- Celeritek Inc. said Friday, Aug. 2, it continues to consider an offer by Anaren Microwave Inc. to purchase the company, though market analysts said there was little indication a deal for the maker...

Fiat to shed Teksid unit.
August 3, 2002... Byline: Greg Johnson Troubled Italian automaker Fiat SpA will raise some badly needed cash after agreeing Friday, Aug. 2, to sell its aluminum automotive components division Teksid Aluminum SpA. Questor Management Co., J.P. Morgan...

Wall Street 10005.
August 3, 2002... Byline: Yvette Kantrow Like the president, like every psychiatrist in Manhattan and like all Europeans, Wall Street officially goes on vacation this week. Working, of course, means hanging that cell phone on bathing togs in Southampton or...

Charterhouse wins Coral Eurobet.
August 3, 2002... Byline: Nicola Hobday in London The private equity firm Charterhouse Development Capital took a gamble on the third-largest U.K. betting chain Coral Eurobet Ltd when it agreed Friday, Aug. 2, to buy the company for pound sterling860 million...

Dade Behring sponsors largely unhurt.
August 3, 2002... Byline: Kelly Holman In a rare twist for a private equity-backed company, Dade Behring Inc.'s prepackaged Chapter 11 filing Aug. 1 in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Chicago will have little impact on its financial sponsors, Bain Capital Inc. and...

Morgan nears deal for Brand.
August 3, 2002... Byline: David Carey and Josh Kosman J.P. Morgan Partners is close to clinching a deal to purchase Brand Services Inc., an industrial scaffolding company, from Credit Suisse First Boston's buyout arm, sources familiar with the deal said the...

Charterhouse puts its money on Coral.
August 3, 2002... Byline: Nicola Hobday in London London private equity firm Charterhouse Development Capital is taking a gamble on the U.K.'s third-largest betting chain, Coral Eurobet Ltd., agreeing Friday to buy the company for pound sterling860 million...