Acquisitions Monthly articles from May 2008

Acquisitions Monthly archives from May 2008

Corporates to the rescue.(EDITORIAL)
May 1, 2008... Novartis's decision to tap the debt markets for about US$5.5bn to finance its US$11bn acquisition of a 25% stake in eye-care firm Alcon has been branded a bold move during the current credit turmoil. Rating agency Standard & Poor's promptly...

April snapshots: synopses of the largest global deals announced in the last month.(MARKET INTELLIGENCE)
May 1, 2008... US: Novartis AG (NA) has been granted an option to raise its interest to 77% from 25% by acquiring a 52% interest, or 153.225m common shares, in Alcon Inc (AI), a manufacturer and wholesaler of pharmaceuticals, surgical equipment and devices,...

Prices hold up for private firms in rush to beat CGT deadline.(MARKET INTELLIGENCE)
May 1, 2008... Prices held up for companies selling in the rush to beat the April 5 Capital Gains Tax (CGT) deadline, according to research from BDO Stoy Hayward, with private equity multiples falling back to match those being paid by trade buyers. The...

New kid on the block: Sino sovereign funds are making their presence felt as they join the new great game of the 21st century: the scramble for the world's natural resources.(LEAD FEATURE: BRIC REPORT)
May 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Sovereign funds are nothing new. You could probably go as far back as the East India Company in the seventeenth century, which ultimately ended up advancing the interests of the British Empire. But in their...

Indians go global: Indian companies are gaining ever-greater confidence to flex their substantial financial muscle on the world stage.(LEAD FEATURE: BRIC REPORT)(Company overview)
May 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] The Indian economy has passed a critical stage over the past two years, firmly establishing itself on an equal footing with its former masters in the West. No longer is the sub-continent considered merely a...

Accessing India: international corporates and buyout groups look to India with its 8% GDP growth rate as a land of opportunity. Most deals that are struck, however, are in the mid-market, where private owners dominate the scene and strategic advice is the strongest currency.(LEAD FEATURE: BRIC REPORT)(Company overview)
May 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Last year, Vodafone's investment in India's fourth largest telecoms player grabbed the headlines. In many ways, aspects of it epitomise the attraction of Indian assets to international acquirers and the issues...

In the aftermath of ABN AMRO: faced with further credit deterioration, a worsening outlook, and the immediate burden of its ABN AMRO acquisition, RBS has proposed a rights issue to strengthen its capital ratio. Will its former rival bidder Barclays follow suit?(SECTOR REPORTS: FOCUS ON FINANCIAL SERVICES)
May 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Rights issues can be hazardous for senior management heads. They risk their necks if they recommend them, so it is never something to rush into. "It is very difficult for senior people to recommend a rights...

Absolut deal gives Pernod clear water: the French drinks group's US$8.9bn acquisition of Sweden's Vin & Sprit makes it the clear number two in the spirits sector globally.(SECTOR REPORTS: FOCUS ON DRINK)
May 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] When news broke on the last day of March that Pernod Ricard had won the auction for Vin & Sprit (vas), shares in the French group fell by as much as 6%. Investors feared that the company, advised by JPMorgan,...

Telecoms: back to the future: if recent market rumours are anything to go by, the big European telecoms groups could be on the acquisition trail again. Is the industry about to repeat past mistakes?(SECTOR REPORTS: FOCUS ON TELECOMS)
May 1, 2008... Mega-deals, accumulating debts the size of a small country and empire building are nothing new to the world of telecoms. Practically all the major European players at some point have hastily rushed into deals, and investors have repented at...

BAA airport ownership criticised: the UK's Competition Commission moved a step closer to recommending the break-up of BAA by claiming the ownership of airports in London and Scotland adversely affects competition between them.(LEGAL & REGULATORY)
May 1, 2008... It looks as if BAA will have to sell three of its UK airports for up to 5.4bn [pounds sterling] in the next year, after an interim report from the Competition Commission concluded that the airport operator's ownership of the main airports in...

Finding new bearings: Peter Norris, the last chief executive of Barings Bank, reflects on the financial crisis and tells Christopher Spink how he is building a fresh corporate finance business at Quayle Munro.(INSTITUTIONS)
May 1, 2008... Acquiring a corporate finance business in the midst of a downturn might seem a rash move. However, Peter Norris, chief executive of AIM-listed Quayle Munro, is not deterred. He has just bought media M&A boutique van Tulleken for 6.1m [pounds...

False dawn for second quarter: tax-driven deals seem to have got the second quarter off to a terrific start but this could prove a mirage for the mid-markets.(MOVING IN THE MID-MARKETS: MID MARKETS VIEW)
May 1, 2008... The second quarter seems to have got off to a terrific start, fuelled by a flurry of exits from smaller UK private companies. But this could prove a mirage for private equity firms seeking an end to the current drought in major debt-fuelled...

Embracing the middle ground: the Midlands' financial community is plucky. Conscious of London's proximity, advisers and deal-doers in the Midlands are anything but complacent, ensuring the continued buoyancy of this regional market. Sarah Young reports from Birmingham.(MOVING IN THE MID-MARKETS)
May 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] According to data produced by private equity firm LDC, the Midlands is the smallest of England's four regions by both volume and value, should the country be divided into London, the South, the Midlands and the North...

Econergy banks on M&A: the renewable energy and carbon credit generator has competing merger and take-private options to fund development.(MOVING IN THE MID-MARKETS)
May 1, 2008... Econergy, the 26.5m [pounds sterling] (US$52.6m) AIM listed company that is headquartered in Colorado in the US and invests in South American renewable energy projects, is at the centre of a takeover tussle between Trading Emissions and...

Moss Bros may not suit Baugur.(MOVING IN THE MID-MARKETS)
May 1, 2008... Baugur, an Icelandic investor with a focus on retail purchases, has reportedly cooled on its intention to launch a full bid for listed UK menswear group Moss Bros. In late February, Moss Bros said that it was in talks with Baugur following...

Thomas Cook taps luxury market.(MOVING IN THE MID-MARKETS)
May 1, 2008... Europe's second largest tour operator Thomas Cook has acquired Elegant Resorts, a luxury travel company. The specialist operator was sold for an estimated US$49.8m (25m [pounds sterling]) in early April by its founding shareholders who avoided...

Arriva enters Hungary and Slovakia.(MOVING IN THE MID-MARKETS)
May 1, 2008... Arriva, the 1.8bn [pounds sterling] UK-based transport company, recently revealed that it was continuing with its European expansion plans after entering the Hungarian and Slovakian bus markets. It agreed to acquire 80% of Interbus Invest,...

Morgan Crucible completes US buy.(MOVING IN THE MID-MARKETS)
May 1, 2008... UK-listed engineering applications company Morgan Crucible completed the addition of two US-based technical ceramics businesses to its portfolio in April, following the announcement of the deal in December last year. It acquired Certech and...

Eastern promise: China's dominance of future global markets is not in doubt. What role foreign private equity will play in that power shift is less certain.(BEHIND THE BUYOUTS: BRIC REPORT)
May 1, 2008... "It feels like you're in the year 3000," says Dominique Senequier of Beijing airport's Terminal 3, completed for an estimated budget of US$3.5bn in February this year in time for the summer's Olympic Games. Talking over lunch in Paris...

Blooming Brazil: two private equity funds, one local, one managed by a global firm, highlight increasing investor appetite for Brazil.(BEHIND THE BUYOUTS)
May 1, 2008... While still relatively young, Brazil's private equity sector is growing increasingly important to the country's economy. Roger Leeds, board chairman of the Emerging Markets Private Equity Association, told delegates at the Brazilian Private...

Gresham buys into corporate wear company for second time.(BEHIND THE BUYOUTS)
May 1, 2008... UK mid-market firm Gresham Private Equity is backing the 82.5m [pounds sterling] (US$164m) management buyout of Johnson Clothing Ltd (JCL), a provider of corporate wear. It was second helpings for Gresham, which had previously invested in the...

TPG buys one of Russia's large pharma distributors.(BEHIND THE BUYOUTS)
May 1, 2008... US private equity house TPG announced at the start of April that it was buying a 50% stake in Russia's largest pharmaceutical distributor, SIA International, for US$800m from one of Russia's richest men, Igor Rudinskiy, who will stay on as...

AXA Private Equity doubles up.(BEHIND THE BUYOUTS)
May 1, 2008... AXA Private Equity, the private equity arm of the French insurer, has stepped up its activity with two acquisitions in April. In early April, the firm bought Atrium Innovations, a developer, manufacturer and marketer of more than 2,000...

CVC buys Dutch supermarket chain.(BEHIND THE BUYOUTS)
May 1, 2008... US private equity house TPG announced at the start of April that it was buying a 5070 stake in Russia's largest pharmaceutical distributor, SIA International, for US$800m from one of Russia's richest men, Igor Rudinskiy, who will stay on as...

Private equity looks at BBC Worldwide.(BEHIND THE BUYOUTS)
May 1, 2008... BBC Worldwide is reported to have started discussions with private equity groups regarding a joint bid for Virgin Media Television. BBC Worldwide, the commercial subsidiary of the BBC, has begun talking to groups including Cinven,...

Biffa.(M&A capital markets round-up)
May 1, 2008... Biffa is to hold a bankers' meeting for its Montague and GIP-backed buyout. Arrangers Barclays, Credit Suisse, HBOS, HSBC and RBS launched syndication of 860m [pounds sterling] of senior and 280m [pounds sterling] of mezzanine debt backing the...

Expro.(M&A capital markets round-up)
May 1, 2008... The Expro deal sees Umbrellastream--a consortium of Goldman Sachs Capital Partners and AlpInvest Partners --win the backing of the independent directors of Expro, a UK based oil services business, for a 1.605bn [pounds sterling] bid. Rival...

Securitas Direct.(M&A capital markets round-up)
May 1, 2008... ESML Intressenter, the investment vehicle of EQT, SakI, Melker Schorling and Investment AB Latour, has completed its SKr10.1bn takeover of Securitas Direct, a Sweden-based domestic security services provider. Senior debt facilities have been...

IDH.(M&A capital markets round-up)
May 1, 2008... Mandated lead arrangers Bank of Ireland, Barclays, Merrill Lynch and RBS are understood to have closed syndication of the 222.5m [pounds sterling] debt backing the acquisition of IDH by Merrill Lynch Global Private Equity. Syndication was...

ISS Energie.(M&A capital markets round-up)
May 1, 2008... Industri Kapital has mandated Credit Mutuel-CIC to arrange and bookrun its buyout of ISS Energie and to refinance debt from its acquisition of IDEX Groupe. The deal was funded in the first quarter of 2008 and is structured as a 23m [euro]...

Northgate Information Solutions.(M&A capital markets round-up)
May 1, 2008... Barclays and HSBC have been mandated to arrange the senior debt backing KKR's buyout of Northgate Information Solutions. Goldman Sachs and Park Square have underwritten a mezzanine tranche. Northgate provides specialist software, outsourcing...

Media&Broadcast.(M&A capital markets round-up)
May 1, 2008... Syndication of Media&Broadcast's 505m [euro] all-senior loan through physical bookrunners BNP Paribas and Goldman Sachs, with bookrunners ABN AMRO, Calyon, Dexia and SG, has closed oversubscribed, a result that will hearten arrangers across the...

SMD.(M&A capital markets round-up)
May 1, 2008... Mid market sponsors Inflexion Private Equity has led an MBO of SMD, a privately-owned designer and manufacturer of subsea vehicle systems based in the UK. Inflexion has taken a majority equity share holding alongside the management team. A...

Stabilus.(M&A capital markets round-up)
May 1, 2008... Bookrunner and co-ordinator JPMorgan, with bookrunners BNP Paribas, Commerzbank and UniCredit, are set to close syndication of the 415m [euro] debt backing Paine & Partners' buyout of German gas spring manufacturer Stabilus. The deal will close...

TietoEnator Corporation.(M&A capital markets round-up)
May 1, 2008... Nordic Capital's portfolio company Cidron Services has mandated Nordea Bank, Pohjola Bank (formerly OKO Bank PLC) and Swedbank AB to arrange debt backing a l.lbn [euro] buyout offer for listed Finnish IT services business TietoEnator...

Tunstall.(M&A capital markets round-up)
May 1, 2008... RBS has launched general syndication for senior debt backing Charterhouse Capital Partners' LBO of Tunstall. A bank meeting was held in London on April 17, attended by both bank and institutional investors. The debt includes 155m [pounds...

Warburg raises US$ 15bn war chest.(ACQUISITION FINANCE)
May 1, 2008... Warburg Pincus, the global private equity firm, has joined the likes of Kohlberg Kravis Roberts, Advent International and Apax Partners in defying expectations of a long-term crisis in the credit markets by raising a massive US$15bn for its...

M&A deal data.(Company overview)
May 1, 2008... This country analysis included acquisitions and buyouts announced between March 19 2008 and April 19 2008. Benelux Target Bidder 2waytraffic NV (Netherlands)-- Sony Corp (Japan)--Special...

Country codes.
May 1, 2008... COUNTRY CODES AA Albania AB Aruba AD Andorra AF Afghanistan Al Abu Dhabi AJ Ajman AL Algeria AM Armenia AN Angola AQ Antigua AR Argentina AS Austria AU Australia...

Pushing the western frontiers: Central and Eastern Europe's convergence with the West has created a unique opportunity, probably never to be repeated. This fact has not been lost on investors, who are rushing to position themselves for years of growth.(CENTRAL EASTERN EUROPE REPORT)(Cover story)
May 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Merger and acquisition activity in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) looks set to continue its frenetic pace, with new entrants arriving on the scene and new areas of Europe opening up for business. At one time,...

Mobius sees more Central Eastern European consolidation: Mark Mobius, emerging markets guru and executive chairman of Templeton Asset Management, talks to Justin Pugsley about potential M&A activity in Central Eastern Europe.(CENTRAL EASTERN EUROPE REPORT)
May 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Mobius sees the big theme in Central Eastern Europe (CEE) as still being very much about convergence with Western Europe and this will remain an important support for M&A. Another factor driving consolidation is...

East side story: fundraising for Central and Eastern Europe broke records in both 2006 and 2007. Robert Venes looks at what is attracting institutional investors to the region.(CENTRAL EASTERN EUROPE REPORT)
May 1, 2008... Last September, as the full extent of the credit crunch began to emerge and the debt markets froze, Mid Europa Partners, a Central and Eastern Europe-focused private equity firm, chose the perfect time to announce its recapitalisation of Polish...

Deals are getting simpler: the credit crunch is making it harder for some to complete transactions and fewer are achievable, but there are still good deals to be done.(CENTRAL EASTERN EUROPE REPORT)(Company overview)
May 1, 2008... M&A activity is quickening in Central and Eastern Europe. This trend is likely to continue due to the region's still-attractive valuations; strong growth rates in GDP, per capita income, and labour productivity; its convergence towards EU-style...

Frustrated giant: CEZ looks beyond CEE: bulging pockets have not so far been enough to ensure the Czech utility giant's expansion in Central Europe. Dominant state ownership of energy assets in the region and increasingly intense competition for assets that do come to market are proving difficult barriers for CEZ to overcome.(CENTRAL EASTERN EUROPE REPORT)(Company overview)
May 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] With a market capitalisation of US$45bn and 6.8m customers, CEZ Group is the Eastern European power giant ranking among the top 10 largest European power utilities. In 2007, it generated Ebitda of US$4.80bn on a...

Banking on the unbanked: Italian banks have been long-standing, strategic investors in the CEE region, but are reaching ever further into high growth markets.(CENTRAL EASTERN EUROPE REPORT)
May 1, 2008... At least Central and Eastern Europe brought some cheer to an otherwise realistically gloomy Alessandro Profumo, chief executive of UniCredit, when he arrived in London in March 2008 to present the Italian bank's 2007 annual results. Of the...

Construction: building the new Europe: the construction sector in Central and Eastern Europe continues to grow at above the rate of many of the region's burgeoning economies. This is encouraging acquirers to look at consolidation opportunities.(CENTRAL EASTERN EUROPE REPORT)
May 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Builders are thriving across Central and Eastern Europe (CEE), as a wave of publicly funded projects throughout the region has helped spark a virtuous circle of economic growth. This newly found wealth has in turn...

Balkans: the big sell-off begins: mention Serbia, Croatia or Albania and they impart a warm glow of deja vu to some investors. They see the next economic success stories in the making. A degree of caution should, however, be exercised.(CENTRAL EASTERN EUROPE REPORT)(Company overview)
May 1, 2008... There's much to be excited about in the Balkans with the brutal Yugoslav civil war now in the past. Trade, investment and incomes are rising, with GDP growth running at 5%-6% although inflation is also on the up. Croatia and Macedonia scored...