Acquisitions Monthly articles from March 2003

Acquisitions Monthly archives from March 2003

Whispers of encouragement: in the midst of many gloomy prognostications in the M&A market there are whispers of encouragement for 2003 in two recent reports. (Insight).
March 1, 2003... Research carried out by management consultants Towers Perrin suggests that M&A deals produce shareholder value more often than has been commonly believed. This will come as some relief after a number of damning research reports on deal failure...

Don't mention the war; Hugh Osmond's hostile approach means he will have to launch a charm offensive and put more cash on the table if he wants to succeed in his bid for Six Continents. (Deal of the month: CMI's hostile bid for 6C).(Capital Management and Investment)
March 1, 2003... The 5.6bn [pounds sterling] (US$8.86bn) hostile bid tabled for Six Continents (6C) by entrepreneur Hugh Osmond has put big-ticket, 1980s-style M&A back on the corporate agenda. But his offer was well-received only in the sense that it will...

Acquisitions monthly awards 2003.(Brief Article)
March 1, 2003... Bank of the year: Rothschild Highly commended: Morgan Stanley Citigroup/Salomon Smith Barney Buyout of the year: Legrand Highly commended: Haarmann & Reimer Crossborder deal of the year: Kingfisher--Castorama Dubois Highly...

Synopses of the largest global deals in February 2003. (Market intelligence).
March 1, 2003... RUSSIA: BP said it planned to merge its Russian assets with the Russian assets of Alfa Group and Access Renova (AAR) in a joint venture agreement valued at Rbs254.3bn (US$8bn). BP was to invest Rbs39.7bn worth of assets, including its minority...

Mega-buyouts dominate league tables. (Buyout league tables).(European buyouts in 2002)(Industry Overview)
March 1, 2003... Equity Rather surprisingly, it was CSFB Private Equity that stole the top spot in the European private equity league tables last year, completing four deals and knocking last year's victors Apax Partners down into eleventh place. The deals...

The European leveraged finance market 2002 and the outlook for 2003. (Leveraged finance).
March 1, 2003... Key trends of 2002 Dramatic fall in lending volumes--The European telecoms market, which had dominated syndicated lending in Europe for some time, ground to a halt in 2002. As a result, European leveraged loan volume plunged 40% during...

M&A capital markets round-up; a review of M&A activity in the capital markets in the month of February providing details and pricing of deals. (M&A capital markets round-up).(mergers and aquisitions)
March 1, 2003... Gala The eagerly awaited financing for the tertiary buyout of Gala Group was launched to the market on February 24, through mandated lead arrangers CSFB and Merrill Lynch. Candover and Cinven have agreed to buy the UK-based bingo,...

Creditors ponder single entity; banks consider pooling loss-making power stations to maximize their recovery from the plants. (Restructuring column).(Column)
March 1, 2003... Banks left holding bankrupt UK power stations are in discussions with electricity specialists about pooling the loss-making assets into a single venture to maximise their financial recovery from the plants. International Power, which...

BE creditors agree to restructuring: nuclear company sets out an 18-month plan for a financial overhaul. (Restructuring column).(British Energy PLC)
March 1, 2003... The financial restructuring of British Energy (BE), the UK's nuclear generator, should take place over the next 18 months, after the company's creditors provisionally agreed to the company's restructuring plan on February 14. Under the...

Jones Day looks for boost in London; the acquisition of Gouldens could give the US firm a stronger foothold in Europe. (Institutions).(Jones Day Reavis & Pogue)
March 1, 2003... The announcement in late November that Gouldens, a London law firm, was in merger talks with Jones Day Reavis & Pogue of the US signalled the latest move in the latter's expansion drive, which has seen it grow far beyond its mid-western...

TLG at crisis point as Tim Lyle quits; UK boutique faces questions about its future as senior men resign. (Institutions).(Tenon Livingstone Guarantee)
March 1, 2003... Tenon Livingstone Guarantee (TLG), the UK middle-market advisory boutique, seemed to be in disarray last month after the resignations of managing director Tim Lyle and two other Principals. But there is a possibility that the crisis could be...

Cavendish expects boost from Merrill man; the UK boutique is targeting the big corporates. (Institutions).(Trevor Civval joins Cavendish Corporate Finance)
March 1, 2003... Trevor Civval, the former co-head of the European middle-market group at Merrill Lynch, has joined UK boutique Cavendish Corporate Finance as a director in a generalist role. "This is a coup for us," says Howard Leigh, director and...

Lehman makes rare hire; JP Morgan banker brought in to boost UK coverage. (Institutions).(Jonathan Brown, Shearson Lehman Bros. Inc.)
March 1, 2003... Lehman Brothers made a senior hire in February, a rare event at any US investment bank's London office over the past 18 months. Jonathan Brown, formerly managing director and chief operating officer for UK investment banking at JP Morgan,...

Financial environmental liabilities: Ben Harding investigates the application of financial solutions to environmental liabilities. (Legal and Regulatory).
March 1, 2003... Tougher environmental legislation, threat of third-party litigation, greater public awareness, and higher corporate governance standards and the emergence of ethical and social responsibility reporting can all impact on the successful...

Efficiencies: following the US model? One of the major differences between US and EU approaches to merger assessment is the treatment of efficiencies. (Legal and Regulatory).
March 1, 2003... In the 1997 amendment to the US DoJ and FTC joint horizontal merger guidelines, the US authorities took the view that efficiencies should be taken into account and defined the nature of efficiencies that would be of most significance. ...

M&A in the media sector: "what factors are driving M&A in the media sector at the moment? Which areas of the media market are most likely to see most M&A activity over the next 12 months and are there companies you would highlight as on the acquisition trail or for sale?" (Viewpoints).(mergers and acquisitions)
March 1, 2003... "In the advertising and marketing sector, the frenzy of consolidation that started in the late-1990s has come to an abrupt halt. With share prices at rock bottom and the sector experiencing the worst slump in revenues in memory, M&A activity...

Abbey National cuts to its core; Abbey National has embarked on the sell-off or closure of its non-core businesses, including wholesale banking, train leasing and vehicle finance. (FIG sector report).
March 1, 2003... Abbey National last month reported a loss of 984m [pounds sterling] (US$1.56bn) largely due to write-offs and charges relating to the wholesale banking unit. Among the businesses contained in wholesale banking, only treasury activities, which...

Vivendi lowers ambitions; the planned 2.05bn [pounds sterling] (US$3.25bn) sale of Southern Water has taken a further twist with Vivendi announcing it was no longer seeking a majority stake in the UK company. (Utilities sector report).
March 1, 2003... Vivendi's bid to acquire Southern from First Aqua, the acquisition vehicle set up by Schroder Salomon Smith Barney and some of its clients to buy the company from Scottish Power in March 2002, ran into regulatory difficulties. Although the...

Moving in the mid-markets (US$300m-US$30m).
March 1, 2003... Overview In February UK buyout activity appeared to drive mid-market activity. Deals included Rutland Fund Management's management buyout (MBO) of the instrument making division of Boosey & Hawkes for 33m [pounds sterling] (US$52.2m) (see...

Will Six Continents provide mid-market pickings? With the high-profile Gala and Six Continents transactions at the larger end of the market? Will we see a knock on effect in the mid-market gaming, hotel and pub sectors? (Sector watch: leisure).
March 1, 2003... The gaming arena is currently perhaps the most talked about hot-spot, with looming deregulation offering a promising source of M&A and private equity activity. The last quarter has already seen a number of deals in the sector. In February,...

Boutiques face tough competition; the boutiques in the French mid-market face stiff competition from the local banks. But as the economy picks up and the boutiques become more international, this may change. (Focus on France).
March 1, 2003... The growth of independent boutiques at the larger end of the French mid-markets has been hampered by the success and strength of the local banks in this sphere. The main contenders are Rothschild and Lazard, with the latter actively...

Behind the buyouts. (Overview).
March 1, 2003... It has been a quiet month. As we go to press, sources suggest that Carlyle has joined Bain Capital, Texas Pacific and oil tycoon Marvin Davis in a bid to acquire Vivendi Universal's US entertainment assets for US$15bn. In the UK, KKR has looked...

The King is in exile; private equity faces tough times as King Cash goes into exile and distributions become erratic. (Private Equity Column).(if cash is still king, then he is in exile)
March 1, 2003... These are tough times for private equity fund managers. The deal-doing titans of the late 1990s are fighting for market share on much less fertile ground. Fundraising is harder because collapsing public equity markets mean investors have had to...

Tertiary buyout for Gala: Candover and Cinven have got together again, this time to back the US$2bn buyout of Gala Group. (Behind the buyouts).
March 1, 2003... A joint bid by Candover and inven has won the auction for Gala Group, the largest bingo business and one of the four largest casino businesses in the UK. The deal, valued at 1.24bn [pounds sterling] (US$2bn), will be the third buyout for the...

Permira acquires Premiere; Premiere, a pay-TV company that was part of the doomed Kirsch Media Empire, has been snapped up by Permira. (Behind the buyouts).(Premiere Cable)
March 1, 2003... In a complicated deal, European buyout house Permira has acquired 65.1% alongside creditor banks Bayerische Landesbank and HypoVereinsbank, which have retained 10%, and Austrian Bank fuer Arbeit und Wirtschaft (BAWAG) with 3.5%. The remaining...

Rutland looks to music; as Boosey & Hawkes puts its businesses up for sale, Rutland fund snaps up the famous instrument making company. (Behind the buyouts).(Rutland Fund Management )
March 1, 2003... The first of two anticipated MBOs at music company Boosey & Hawkes is expected to be the sale of its instrument-making division to The Music Group, a newco backed by Rutland Fund Management for 33.2m [pounds sterling] (US$52.5m). The...

Rival offer emerges for PizzaExpress; Luke Johnson and ABN AMRO Capital are confident of success despite a rival offer. (Behind the buyouts).
March 1, 2003... Just before going to press, ABN AMRO Capital thought it had secured the rights to delist PizzaExpress only for a rival bid to emerge at the last moment. The management buyout team, which is being led by Luke Johnson and backed by ABN AMRO...

Deutsche finalises private equity sale; Ted Virtue and Graham Clempson complete MBO. (Behind the buyouts).(Morgan Grenfell Private Equity )
March 1, 2003... The long running saga surrounding Deutsche Bank's integration of Morgan Grenfell Private Equity appears to be at an end with the announcement that chief executive officer Ted Virtue and European managing partner Graham Clempson have structured...

HSBC exits Ampafrance. (Buyouts round-up).(Brief Article)
March 1, 2003... Dorel Industries, a Canada-based consumer products company, has snapped up Ampafrance from HSBC Private Equity for US$240m in a first French exit for the UK-based buyout firm. The move is good news for the group at a time when, if market...

Clayton Dubilier & Rice shelves German plans. (Buyouts round-up).(Brief Article)
March 1, 2003... US buyout giant Clayton, Dubilier & Rice (CD&R) has become the latest private equity firm to get cold feet in the German market. The firm, which employed Benedikt von Schroder from Goldman Sachs in 2000 with a brief to establish a German...

KKR pulls out of Safeway hunt. (Buyouts round-up).(Kohlberg Kravis Roberts )(Brief Article)
March 1, 2003... US private equity firm Kohlberg Kravis Roberts (KKR) has pulled out of the race to buy UK supermarket group Safeway. The firm said in a statement that it had "decided for the time being not to progress its potential offer for Safeway any...

European Buyouts Report. (Buyouts round-up).(Brief Article)
March 1, 2003... The European Buyouts Report will be published in April. The report is intended to provide a review of activity throughout Europe, analysing the strategic focus of private equity--in terms of acquisitions, exits and value-creation within...

Martin Currie ramps up PE exposure. (Funds).(Paul Murray joins company)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2003... UK fund manager Martin Currie has appointed Paul Murray from DB Capital Partners with a view to ramping up its exposure to alternative assets. The initial plan is to launch a 300m [euro] European mid-market fund of funds vehicle. The fund,...

ISIS Equity Partners III nears target. (Funds).(Brief Article)
March 1, 2003... ISIS Equity Partners has announced the second close of its current fund at 143m [pounds sterling]. Launched in September 2002, ISIS Equity Partners III held a first close at the end of the year and is aiming for a final close on its target of...

WestLB boost PE war-chest. (Funds).(private equity)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2003... Although not strictly private equity, and not strictly external fundraising either, Robin Saunders, the head of WestLB's principal finance team, has secured a multi-billion dollar funding package from the parent group. The move allows her team...

Pub exit. (Exits).(Electra Partners Europe sells Tom Cobleight to Spirit Group)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2003... Electra Partners Europe has sold Midlands-based managed pub company Tom Cobleigh to Spirit Group; the privately owned managed pub operator. This follows the sale by Tom Cobleigh in December 2002 of its smaller tenanted pubs business and...

3i make three disposals. (Exits).(sells Poundzone to Factory Shiop Group, Altair, and Travelbag)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2003... 3i continued its impressive recent exit run with a further three sales in February. The largest sale involved Poundzone, a discount retailer based in the North East of England, which has been acquired by The Factory Shop Group. The deal also...

France is buyers' market: as corporate France goes up for sale, private equity players stand to be the main beneficiaries. (Focus on France).
March 1, 2003... Despite the fact that the number of completed deals dropped for the fifth year in a row, the French buyout market rocketed in value last year by more than 100%. Figures provided by the Centre for Management Buyout Research show that the...

A land of hope for M&A? France looks more promising than other markets in Europe, but it is still hard going for M&A professionals. (Focus on France).
March 1, 2003... All eyes are now fixed on France. Hungry banks and private equity firms, chastened by poor returns on lavish investments in other Continental European countries, are refocusing on the increasingly valuable French mergers and acquisitions...

Rich pickings from Ahold? Two events have put the spotlight on the Benelux region in the past couple of months: the Ontex deal and the accounting scandal at Ahold. (Benelux report).
March 1, 2003... The Ontex public-to-private in Belgium, the largest ever in the region, could well herald a new dawn of private equity activity in the country (see Largest PTP in Belgium). Meanwhile, the scandal surrounding one of the Netherlands' best...

M&A deal data. (Benelux, France, Germany).(Illustration)
March 1, 2003... M&A deal data Benelux Target Reliant Energy Europe (NE)--Electric utility; holding company Sales ($): n/a Net Profits ($): n/a Bidder Nuon (NE)--Electric and gas utility Sales ($): n/a...

Monthly sector analysis.(acquisitions and buyouts announced in February 2003 listed by industry sector)(Illustration)
March 1, 2003... Monthly sector analysis THIS SECTOR ANALYSIS INCLUDES ACQUISITIONS AND BUYOUTS ANNOUNCED DURING FEBRUARY 2003. UK PUBLIC OFFERS COMPLETED BETWEEN THESE DATES ARE INCLUDED, WHEREAS NEW AND PENDING OFFERS ARE EXCLUDED. THE TRANSACTIONS...