Every morning the Street of Walls team puts out an update on market levels, today’s top stories, and active M&A deals.
Today’s Top Stories:
- FREE HF 13F Report: Next week the StreetofWalls team will be releasing the 4Q 2011 Hedge Fund Intelligence Report, free sign-up http://bit.ly/y2CMbx
- Europe Update: no G20 agreement on extra IMF funds for Europe expected over the weekend (G20 finance ministers/central bankers will be meeting Sat 2/25)
- Home Depot Earnings: Impressive results exceed above-Street expectations
- Hedge Funds Getting Bullish: Hedge funds are cranking up their bets in equities and credit in 2012?s buoyant markets in the belief that the euro zone, U.S. and Chinese economies will fare better than many were fearing last year http://bit.ly/AySkiK
- War at RBS Investment Banking: There can be few more unhappy places to be working in the City at the moment than behind the doors of 250 Bishopsgate, the London home of Royal Bank of Scotland’sinvestment banking arm http://tgr.ph/yP0QPe
- Fairholme Adds AIG: Bruce Berkowitz’s Fairholme Capital disclosed a 6.1% ownership of the total outstanding common shares of American International Group (NYSE:AIG) http://bit.ly/xeaG9B
- Third Avenue sells CTL: Third Avenue Management disclosed that it completely sold out of its position in Catalyst Paper Corporation (TSX:CTL) http://bit.ly/w9kmPt
- Icahn Wants CVI: Billionaire investor Carl Icahn put out a press release yesterday announcing his intention to purchase all of the outstanding common stock of CVR Energy (NYSE:CVI) http://bit.ly/zD74Pj
- FED Bank M&A: U.S. regulators eventually gave the green light to the $9 billion merger of Capital One Financial Corp. and ING Direct in a key test of the financial rules-of-the-road since the Dodd-Frank Acthttp://on.wsj.com/xZjifg
- More BAC Layoffs in Equities: Bank of America Corp., the U.S. lender seeking to trim costs in investment banking, told equities-unit employees to expect targeted dismissals next month, said two people with knowledge of the message http://bloom.bg/wbhXVd
Economic Calendar:
- NA
M&A Watch:
- Weekly M&A Trends: This week saw some a big jump in M&A while ECM/DCM activity declined. Announced investment banking M&A doubled from the prior week to $80.9 billion, M&A volumes are still very low for the start of the year http://bit.ly/yuWbVv
- Largest PE Deal for the year: This morning private equity firm Advent International and Goldman Sachs agreed to buy TransUnion in the largest private equity deal of 2012 to date http://bit.ly/AbNayV
