Carlyle Group LP (NASDAQ:CG) co-founder David Rubenstein spoke with Bloomberg TV’s Cristina Alesci in Berlin, Germany today. David Rubenstein said that buyout firms will put “much more” money to work this year as deals pick up. He said, “We are going to see a pickup in M&A activity and a pickup in corporate buyer activity…I do think that this year we will see much more money deployed than you did see last year.” Rubenstein also...
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NBCUniversal buyout was announced by Comcast Corporation (NASDAQ:CMCSA) (NASDAQ:CMCSK) on Tuesday late afternoon EST. Comcast announced that it would purchase all of General Electric Company (NYSE:GE)’s 49% stake in NBCUniversal for $16.7bn, accelerating the put option time frame. Nomura Research has put out a report with some interesting numbers on the valuation. They estimate that this deal values NBCUniversal at 9.5x 2013E EBITDA, a 15-20% premium to peer media companies. Some investors argue that the premium is warranted as it buys...
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Mason Hawkins, chairman and chief executive officer of Southeastern Asset Management indicated that his firm is prepared to fight Dell Inc. (NASDAQ:DELL)’s agreement with the consortium of buyers who want to take the company private for $24.4 billion. In a regulatory filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on Tuesday, Hawkins wrote that his firm hired D.F. King & Co. to provide certain consulting and related services. D.F. King & Co. is one...
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Nasdaq OMX Group, Inc “held discussions with private equity firm Carlyle Group about taking the stock exchange private” about three weeks ago, according to an exclusive report from FOX Business Network (FBN) Senior Correspondent Charlie Gasparino. Gaparino also says, “It’s unclear which side initiated the talks,” but that they were prompted by “heightened competition” and that Carlyle Group LP (NYSE:CG) Chief Financial Officer Adena Friedman is a “key player in the negotiations.” More details on...
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More and more in fashion lately in the financial world is companies taking huge write-downs of some flopped acquisitions. Even the big-name players with tremendous resources to scrutinize the acquisition can’t escape this fate. Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ: MSFT) had to own up last July to a $6.2-billion write-off of the acquisition of aQuantive, a digital advertising company that Microsoft bought for $6.3 billion cash in 2007. The size of the write-down is significant even...
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AB InBev is currently negotiating with the United States Department of Justice to resolve some antitrust concerns and obtain approval for its $20.1 billion agreement to buy out the remaining 50 percent stake in Grupo Modelo SAB de CV (PINK:GPMCF). Anheuser-Busch InBev NV (NYSE:BUD) (EBR:ABI) needs to give up more control of its beer distribution in the United States or sell a brewery to settle the antitrust lawsuit. According to Herbert Hovenkamp, professor at University of Iowa who teaches...
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HSBC Holdings plc (NYSE:HBC) (LON:HSBA) has completed the sale of its 15.6 percent stake in the Chinese insurance company, Pin An. The U.K-based bank wrapped up the final parts of the deal just in time today (February 1) before the deadline. According to the provisions of the deal, taking the negotiations past midnight, Hong Kong time, would have resulted in the termination of the deal for HSBC and Ping An. The delay to the final day had caused uncertainty over whether...
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The U.S. Department of Justice has sued Anheuser-Busch InBev NV (NYSE:BUD) (EBR:ABI) as a result of the company’s $20.1 billion deal to purchase 50 percent of the Mexican brewer Grupo Modelo SAB de CV (PINK:GPMCF). It has alleged the transaction will lessen competition and increase prices in the U.S. beer market. After the complaint was filed by the Department of Justice on Thursday, shares of both companies dove. Bill Baer, head of the DOJ’s...
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The European Commission (EC) officially denied the proposal of United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) to acquire TNT Express NV (AMS:TNTE) for approximately €5.2 billion ($6.9 billion) on Wednesday. On January 14th last year, the EC indicated that it will not approve the deal because of antitrust issues, which prompted United Parcel Service Inc (NYSE:UPS) to abandon its bid to buy out the Dutch shipping company. The EC explained that the merger of the United Parcel Service,...
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Kinder Morgan Energy Partners LP (NYSE:KMP) has taken a giant stride towards acquiring Copano Energy, L.L.C. (NASDAQ:CPNO), in a deal worth about $3.2 billion. The completion of the deal will give Kinder Energy access to oil and gas-rich territories in Texas, Wyoming and Oklahoma. The shale gas exploration industry has gained popularity over the recent past and companies are grappling to have a share of the cake before it runs out. According to the acquisition details...
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DOJ and FBI, backed by the Department of Homeland Security, have asked the FCC to not act on the proposed takeover of Sprint (S) by Japan’s SoftBank until the agencies complete their review of related national security, law enforcement, and public safety issues. Analysts at Stifel Nicholas expect the FCC to agree, as it has done in the past when the DOJ and other agencies have made similar requests on proposed foreign purchases of...
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