Acquisitions Monthly articles from November 2006

Acquisitions Monthly archives from November 2006

Tata Steel makes US$9.6bn play for Corus.(EDITORIAL)
November 1, 2006... It's all Lakshmi Mittal's fault. He started it when he bought Ukraine's steel manufacturer Kryvorizhstal in October last year for US$4.8bn. Then in January this year, his company, Mittal Steel, moved on Luxembourg's Arcelor. The resulting...

Where is Central and Eastern Europe now: the kind of opportunities once found in Central & Eastern Europe are now being sought in South Eastern Europe and beyond, as the old CEE shows signs of maturity.(REGIONAL REPORT: CENTRAL AND EASTERN EUROPE)
November 1, 2006... Put a pin into the middle of a map of Central and Eastern Europe, and it might stick into Prague, or Bratislava, or maybe even Budapest. But speaking in financial terms, referring to what the increasingly redundant term "CEE" once signified to...

Private equity a small fraction of M&A in CEE: local private equity houses still dominate but international private equity is increasingly scouting around for big deals in the region.(REGIONAL REPORT: CENTRAL AND EASTERN EUROPE)
November 1, 2006... Private equity in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) is still a small percentage of overall M&A activity in the region, at just short of 5% compared with 20% on global basis. Local players, such as Mid Europa Partners, Advent International...

Business growth across the region: substantial progress over the last two years was achieved by Central and Eastern Europe, where the markets responded favourably to previous reforms, and by the former Soviet Union, which benefited from political change in some countries.(REGIONAL REPORT: CENTRAL AND EASTERN EUROPE)
November 1, 2006... The pace of expansion over the past two years in Central and Eastern Europe, the former Soviet Union and the Baltic States continued to exceed the levels of most other regions of the world. Market reforms have advanced in many countries but...

October snapshot: synopses of the largest global deals announced last month.(MARKET INTELLIGENCE)
November 1, 2006... US An investor group including Apollo Management LP and Texas Pacific Group Inc said it planned to acquire all the outstanding common stock of Harrah's Entertainment Inc (HE), an owner and operator of casinos and hotels, for US$81 in cash per...

Heavy bid premia in third quarter: with both average premia and deal volumes at impressive levels, the fourth quarter of 2006 will have a lot to live up to.(MARKET INTELLIGENCE)
November 1, 2006... The third quarter of 2006 saw none of the bid premium versus volume trade-off seen in the second quarter on M&A transactions. The third quarter's average premia went skywards to the highest levels since the final quarter of last year. The...

PCPI discount disappearing: private company exit multiples set to overtake public company comparables.(MARKET INTELLIGENCE)
November 1, 2006... The PCPI tracks the discount between how public and private companies are being valued. The PCPI is calculated as the arithmetic mean of the P/Es for deals where sufficient information has been disclosed. Four years ago, the PCPI discount...

Flood of interest in UK water: the UK water sector is looking at the most dramatic change of ownership since it was privatised, as it seems that infrastructure funds and other financial investors cannot get enough of the stock at present.(SECTOR REPORTS: FOCUS ON UTILITIES)
November 1, 2006... The sale of Thames Water to the Macquarie-led Kemble consortium for 8bn [pounds sterling] (including debt) in mid-October confirmed the value that such investors now place on the stable, regulated revenues that water businesses offer. When it...

BAE did well to sell Airbus stake: BAE has truly become a mid-Atlantic defence prime while EADS is beset with an Airbus crisis.(SECTOR REPORTS: FOCUS ON DEFENCE)
November 1, 2006... Friday 13th is normally associated with bad luck. But Friday October 13 was a good day for BAE Systems, Britain's largest defence company and now the sixth biggest contractor to the US Pentagon. On this day, BAE finally wiped its hands...

Dubai takes stake in Standard Chartered: speculation has mounted that Istithmar might increase its initial holding in acquisitive Asian bank.(SECTOR REPORTS: FOCUS ON FIG)
November 1, 2006... Istithmar, a Dubai investment fund owned by the United Arab Emirates government, has taken a 2.7% stake in major Asian bank Standard Chartered and is thought keen to lift its holding further. On October 6, Istithmar said it had spent US$1bn...

Bank of Scotland promotes Mark Hammond.(INSTITUTIONS)
November 1, 2006... Bank of Scotland Corporate has appointed Mark Hammond as head of integrated finance. He is responsible for more than 70 buyout transactors based in seven offices throughout the UK and a portfolio of more than 50 investments. Hammond...

PPM to split from Prudential: Prudential's private equity arm is looking at raising an independent fund ahead of a split from its parent.(INSTITUTIONS)
November 1, 2006... Private equity group PPM Capital is considering plans to split from its parent company Prudential, the UK insurer, which itself was the subject of a possible approach from rival Aviva earlier this year. At present, PPM, which invests in...

Environmental awareness grows.(LEGAL & REGULATORY)
November 1, 2006... From its beginnings as a highly specialist area used on a relatively small number of deals, environmental due diligence has become increasingly important--reflecting growing awareness of business's ecological impact, and new regulation by...

Mid-market players network: the M&A Mid-Market Forum saw discussion of trends and issues in M&A from leading private equity funds and representatives from the M&A community.(MOVING IN THE MID-MARKETS: (US$500M-US$30M))
November 1, 2006... The Sixth Mid-Market Forum was in the Moltkes Palace in Copenhagen, Denmark on October 6, when more than 300 M&A professionals from industry, private equity and investment banks were able to discuss the latest trends in M&A mid-markets in...

Outsourcing continues to drive deals: support services encompass a vast array of smaller businesses. Activity has remained buoyant across the sector, with investors focused on attractive niches such as offshoring and compliance where plenty of growth remains, but unlike last year there have been fewer deals in more mature areas such as security.(MOVING IN THE MID-MARKETS)
November 1, 2006... The past year has seen a number of attempts by private equity investors to take over listed companies. But despite the interest these mooted bids generate, only a handful have been successful. One of the smoothest happened in the support...

A City firm outside the Square Mile: increasingly, this Guildford-based firm is becoming recognised on the national as well as regional stage.(MOVING IN THE MID-MARKETS: (US$500M-US$30M))
November 1, 2006... Stevens & Bolton is a leading southeast law firm based in Guildford. The firm has established a reputation in the region for undertaking high quality legal work and providing a City-style service. Increasingly it is becoming recognised on the...

False dawn? With billions of dollars set aside for investment in Asia, private equity houses are facing up to tricky obstacles and regulation. Chris Crowe reports from Hong Kong.(BEHIND THE BUYOUTS: REGIONAL REPORT)
November 1, 2006... China is hardly in the grip of nationalistic fervour, but just as a sequence p of private equity deals herald an influx of foreign capital, the authorities appear to be taking a step back. Carlyle's rather sensational US$375m deal to secure...

Bidders in the frame for VNU's magazines: United Business Media, the UK media company behind PR Newswire, is in the frame to buy VNU's European magazine business, as are buyout firms Providence Equity Partners, Permira and Apax.(BEHIND THE BUYOUTS: REGIONAL REPORT)
November 1, 2006... First round bids are thought to be due by the end of this month for VNU's European magazine business, worth in excess of 500m [euro] (US$630m). Magazine titles up for grabs could include Intermediair and Computable in the Netherlands, and...

Viewpoints on mezzanine: we asked firms how would they describe the market for mezzanine currently--and are the changes we are seeing at the moment permanent? What multiples of leverage is the mezzanine market comfortable with and who are the new buyers and sellers of mezzanine?(BEHIND THE BUYOUTS: REGIONAL REPORT)
November 1, 2006... "The European mezzanine market is currently overheated; as indeed is the leveraged senior debt market or, more accurately, the institutional leveraged senior debt market, as it is fair to say banks as an investor group are demonstrably less...

Blackstone and PAI buy United Biscuits for US$3bn.(BEHIND THE BUYOUTS: REGIONAL REPORT)
November 1, 2006... Private equity groups Blackstone and PM Partners have agreed to United Biscuits, the owner of McVitie's biscuits, for more than 1.6bn [pounds sterling] (US$3bn) through a combination of equity and debt. Cinven and MidOcean had been...

Texas Pacific and AXA clinch TDF.(BEHIND THE BUYOUTS: REGIONAL REPORT)
November 1, 2006... Private equity houses, Texas Pacific Group and AXA Private Equity, have agreed to buy a 60% stake worth some US$4bn in French infrastructure business Telediffusion de France (TDF). Effectively a secondary buyout, Texas Pacific is buying a...

Altana.
November 1, 2006... * Nycomed has launched the 5.7bn [euro] all-senior debt backing its acquisition of fellow pharmaceutical manufacturer Altana. Credit Suisse, Citigroup, Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs are bookrunners. Nordea, SEB Merchant Banking and DnB Nor...

Telediffusion de France.
November 1, 2006... * Telediffusion de France's (TDF) 3.97bn [euro] debt package backing its buyout by Texas Pacific Group will come to market before the yearend, through bookrunners BNP Paribas, Citigroup, Merrill Lynch and Morgan Stanley. The structure will be...

Informa.
November 1, 2006... * Barclays has been mandated to arrange the debt backing Candover and Cinven's bid for UK academic publisher Informa, which is worth around 2bn [euro]. Speculation is that, if successful, the sponsors would merger Informa with their other key...

Sisal.
November 1, 2006... * Italian gaming company Sisal is out with the 980m [euro] debt package that backs its LBO by Apax Partners and Permira. ABN AMRO, Lehman Brothers, RBS and Unicredito are running books on the senior and second lien debt, while Banca Intesa,...

House of Fraser.
November 1, 2006... Bookrunners Bank of Scotland and Glitnir have extended the syndication period for the 600m [euro] debt package backing Icelandic investment group Baugur's acquisition of UK department store House of Fraser. As there are so many competing...

Igloo Birds Eye Frozen Foods.
November 1, 2006... * Igloo Birds Eye Frozen Foods has had a good start in syndicating its 1.475bn [euro] deal, currently in the market via bookrunners Calyon, Credit Suisse, Goldman Sachs and Lehman Brothers. The book for the PIK, mezzanine and institutional...

Dorna.
November 1, 2006... * The 355m [euro] equivalent loan backing Bridgepoint's secondary buyout of motorcycle Grand Prix organiser Dorna has been flexed down after getting a 100% hit rate from funds and banks in syndication, via mandated lead arrangers SG, RBS and...

East London Bus and Coach Company.
November 1, 2006... * East London Bus and Coach Company and the South East London and Kent Bus is out with a 340m [euro] senior facility backing its acquisition by Macquarie. Dresdner Kleinwort is mandated lead arranger and bookrunner, with RBC as co lead arranger...

Nursing home chain Medica France has reverse flexed the margins on its 622.3m [euro] oversubscribed LBO, through bookrunner RBS.
November 1, 2006... * Nursing home chain Medica France has reverse flexed the margins on its 622.3m [euro] oversubscribed LBO, through bookrunner RBS. BC Partners is the sponsor. Calyon joined as a mandated lead arranger ahead of launch. The flex takes 25bp off...

Time Partner.
November 1, 2006... * Time Partner is expected to generate sales of around 190m [euro] by FYE 31 December 2006. The company is also expected to benefit from the continued deregulation of the German temping market and the ongoing industry consolidation. The German...

M&A deal data.
November 1, 2006... M&A DEAL DATA This country analysis included acquisitions and buyouts announced between 17 September 2006 and 17 October 2006. Benelux Target Bidder Carrieres Unies De Porphyre SA Vinci SA...