Mergers & Acquisitions: The Dealmaker's Journal articles from April 2007

Mergers & Acquisitions: The Dealmaker's Journal archives from April 2007

Calgary's ACG Chapter Rides The Wave of the City's Robust Growth.(Association for Corporate Growth)
April 1, 2007... Calgary is the fastest growing corporate center in Canada and the country's third city to form an ACG chapter. Achieving chapter status in just 18 months, our group now boasts 75 members from among the private equity, corporate, and service...

ACG Austin Has Its Eye on Expansion.(Association for Corporate Growth)
April 1, 2007... With a 45% rise in membership last year, ACG Austin experienced a breakthrough year. Last year was one when the chapter's membership and treasury reached a point where it could advance the chapter to the next level. Last June, we held...

China PE Forum Is a Must-Attend Event for Those Eyeing the Region.
April 1, 2007... ACG, the All China Federation of Industry & Commerce, and the Tianjin Municipal People's Government are pleased to announce the First China International Private Equity Forum, to be held in Tianjin, P.R. China, June 6-8, 2007. What is...

Strategics Should Borrow Moves From PE's Playbook: Shedding their reluctance to take on debt in deals would help corporate buyers compete better for some larger targets.(private equity)
April 1, 2007... As dealmakers try to digest the impact of the latest private equity mega-buyouts some strategists are beginning to wonder whether strategic buyers might do well to copy their private equity rivals and shed their resistance to taking on debt...

Hedge Funds Team UpWith PE Brethren.(Citigroup Private Equity)(SAC Capital Partners)(Kohlberg Kravis Roberts)
April 1, 2007... If imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, hedge funds are showing their admiration for their private equity brethren as they try to jump on the buyout bandwagon. SAC Capital Partners joined a buying consortium including Kohlberg...

Breaking Up Is Costlier to Do.(fees for reverse buyouts)
April 1, 2007... A recent twist on the breakup fee - creatively named a reverse breakup fee - is starting to catch fire in dealmaking. Reverse breakup fees, which are penalties paid by buyers that do not consummate a deal, are appearing more frequently in...

Takeover defenses: Fewer Firms Pop Poison Pills.(amendments in stockholder's rights plan)
April 1, 2007... The widespread trend of installing a poison pill which cropped up during the hostile takeover craze of the 1980s appears to be losing steam. According to corporate governance and executive compensation information provider The Corporate...

The Changing Scene.(Alvarez & Marsal L.L.C. appointed Mark Belanger)(Welsh, Carson, Anderson and Stowe appointed Anthony Ecock)(TRG appointed Timothy Lewis)
April 1, 2007... Advent International - Moving up the ranks at the firm recently were: Steven Collins, North American deal team in Boston; Tim Franks, Western European team in London; and Istvan Szoke, Central and Eastern European team in London. All are...

New Digs for M&A Firms.
April 1, 2007... A strong belief that mergers and acquisitions in 2007 could eclipse last year's dealmaking activity is driving record levels of M&A-related hirings and new-office launches in the early months of the year. Shanghai is home to American...

Baker, Donelson, Bearman, Caldwell & Berkowitz -.(appointment of Mark Carlson)(Brief article)
April 1, 2007... Mark Carlson recently was named a shareholder of the firm. Based in the firm's Memphis office, he concentrates on M&A, securities, and general business transactions. (c) 2007 Mergers and Acquisitions Journal and SourceMedia, Inc. All...

Bryant Park Capital -.(appointment of Antony Joffe)(Brief article)
April 1, 2007... This New York-based investment bank recruited Antony Joffe, a former principal at mezzanine capital fund FB Capital Partners, as a principal. Joffe and Bryant Park chief executive Joel Magerman are opening a Philadelphia office to better...

Cobblestone Advisors -.(appointment of Patrick Hanraty )(Brief article)
April 1, 2007... Cobbleston, a division of Harris Williams that provides M&A services to lower-mid-market companies, hired Patrick Hanraty as a managing director in Philadelphia. In prior roles, Hanraty worked at the Delaware Valley Industrial Resource...

Communications Equity Associates -.(appointment of Bob Ennis)(Brief article)
April 1, 2007... Media, entertainment, communications, and IT firm CEA recruited Bob Ennis onto its investment banking and corporate finance team as a managing director, based in New York. He focuses on interactive and new media deals. Prior to joining...

DLA Piper -.(appointment of Roger Meltzer)(Brief article)
April 1, 2007... Leading corporate and securities lawyer Roger Meltzer joined the firm as global chair of corporate and finance. He is also a member of DLA's executive committee. Before this, he had spent his entire career practicing law at Cahill Gordon...

FocalPoint Partners -.(appointment of Kenneth Marek)(Brief article)
April 1, 2007... This mid-market focused investment bank recruited Kenneth Marek as a managing director in its Los Angeles office, where he works on expanding the distressed investment banking practice. Marek, backed by extensive middle-market advisory...

HarbourVest Partners -.(appointment of Hemal Mirani)(Brief article)
April 1, 2007... Principal Hemal Mirani has been promoted to managing director of the firm's Hong Kong unit, HarbourVest Partners (Asia). She joined HarbourVest's Hong Kong-based division in 1997 and became a principal in 2002. She focuses on managing...

KPMG Corporate Finance-.(appointment of Lorie Beers)(Brief article)
April 1, 2007... Lorie Beers accepted a managing director position in KPMG's special situations advisory group, which assists distressed mid-market companies. Prior to joining the firm, Beers had been the director of business development at Gordian...

Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati -.(resignation of Chul Pak)(Brief article)
April 1, 2007... Federal Trade Commission assistant director Chul Pak left his post to accept a partner position in Wilson Sonsini's antitrust practice. Pak, based in New York, had served for eight years at the FTC, most recently as assistant director of...

Fair Value Pricing Stirs Up Debate in the PE Community: SFAS 157, which requires that portfolio holdings be reported at fair value, has raised concerns among financial buyers about valuations and other issues.
April 1, 2007... Private equity's debate over fair value was sparked anew last fall when the FASB issued SFAS 157, which provides a concrete definition of "fair value" and enhanced guidance for using fair value to assign values to assets and liabilities. ...

Fast Friends.(stock market chaos to unite consulting services and investment banks)(Brief article)
April 1, 2007... For many of our corporate readers, the word consultant often carries a negative connotation. At their worst, the criticism goes, consultants are overpaid high-thinkers who know nothing about your business but are quick to recommend...

Sponsors and Strategics in a Dead Heat: Flush with cash, PE firms are competing for deals in sectors that were historically the domain of strategic buyers alone.
April 1, 2007... Don't let deal statistics fool you. Even though strategic-buyer dealmaking accounted for roughly 70% of all acquisitions involving a U.S. target last year, based on the number of deals, financial sponsors are giving their corporate buyer...

Sellers Avoid a Tax Bite With Sponsored Spin-Offs: The deal format also reduces risk and provides a committed financial partner to guide the newly public company.
April 1, 2007... A relatively new deal structure, the sponsored spin-off, appears poised to become an increasingly popular divestiture strategy. The structure allows a seller to divest businesses tax-free, potentially saving billions of dollars, while also...

An Uphill Battle to Bag The Biggest LBO Ever: Political uncertainty and competing bidders stand in the way of KKR and TPG clinching their record-breaking TXU buyout.(Kohlberg, Kravis, Roberts & Co.; Texas Pacific Group)
April 1, 2007... Not even a month has passed since Blackstone Group won the bidding to buy Equity Office Properties and already a new deal, should it close, will unseat that deal as the largest LBO ever. The big question, however, is whether Kohlberg Kravis...

Changing of the Guard At Goldsmith Agio Helms.
April 1, 2007... Without fanfare, Goldsmith Agio Helms made a significant change in its top management. Jack Helms stepped down from his post as CEO at the beginning of the year and now serves as chairman, while seasoned bankers Mike McFadden and David...

DLJ and Morgans Hotel Make a Play in Casinos.(Donaldson, Lufkin and Jenrette Securities Corp.; Morgans Hotel Group)
April 1, 2007... Private equity has made a home in nearly every corner of the economy, so why not casinos? The $770 million acquisition of the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas by DLJ Merchant Banking Partners and Morgans Hotel Group represents the latest...

PENSION FUND ROUNDUP.(Pacific Corporate Group Asset Management breaks out of Pacific Corporate Group Holdings)(New York State Teachers' Retirement System hired Abbott Select Buyouts II)(Teacher Retirement System of Texas plans for new investments)
April 1, 2007... PCG Asset Management Breaks Out Pacific Corporate Group Holdings announced that Pacific Corporate Group Asset Management (PCGAM) has been reestablished as a separate, independent, employee-owned firm. PCGAM was first created in 2005 as...

WHO'S WHO.(Association for Corporate Growth)(Directory)
April 1, 2007... ACG Board 0f Directors Paul Stewart* Chairman pstewart@pscapitalpartners.com Daniel A. Varroney* President & CEO, ACG dvarroney@acg.org T. Patrick Hurley Jr.* ACG Immediate-Past Chairman ...

Dining Habits Bode Well for Eatery Growth and Deals: The restaurant sector, buoyed by an increase in dining out, has been serving up an abundance of industry buyouts.
April 1, 2007... The restaurant industry, including upscale dining establishments, has been attracting more attention from prospective buyers, particularly private equity firms, in recent months. Strategic buyers looking to expand their portfolios may be...

Getting the Ok Is Only the First Hurdle in SIRIUS/XM Deal: Even if the satellite radio hookup gains regulatory approval, integration and synergy issues could plague the deal partners.
April 1, 2007... The $13 billion proposed merger of SIRIUS Satellite Radio and XM Satellite Radio is being touted as the best chance for the two satellite radio providers to cut losses and achieve synergies. But even as business analysts try to gauge how...

Everything's Peachy at Atlanta Capital Connection.(merger and acquisitions)(Brief article)
April 1, 2007... In February, ACG Atlanta held its 2007 Capital Connection, attracting nearly 900 attendees and more than 80 private equity exhibitors. Over the last five years, the Atlanta Capital Connection has evolved into the premier M&A and corporate...

Gearing Up for Global Events.
April 1, 2007... The first quarter of 2007 is in our rearview mirrors now. Our membership has surpassed the 11,000 mark, and we're focused on growing the ACG Community globally. Our 36th Annual InterGrowth Conference is only days away now, and excitement is...

Serious Tire-Kicking For Sizing Up the Shop Floor: An in-depth analysis tool, Operational Due Diligence, helps investors flesh out whether a target's manufacturing operations would enhance or reduce deal value.
April 1, 2007... You're a private equity investor looking to buy a manufacturing company. You've carefully examined the company's business case. You like the market and the industry. You like the company's position and potential. And management appears to be...

Pitfalls of Poaching Employees After A Deal Craters; Luring talent from a suitor, or losing employees, after deal talks crumble presents risks for both companies.
April 1, 2007... For most companies, their intangible assets - trade secrets and corporate know-how - are what give them an edge over their competitors. In an acquisition, they are often among the most coveted assets. So, any firm that enters into deal...

Perfecting the Art Of Stalking Horse Bidding: Successful stalking horse bids address the often-conflicting aims of the seller and its constituencies while taking into account the bidder's financial and operational needs.
April 1, 2007... Economic and forecasting and market intelligence firm Global Insight recently announced that U.S. corporate bankruptcies are expected to increase by 17% this year, due to cooling of the housing market, high energy prices, and other factors....