Mergers and Acquisitions
PepsiCo Not Hungry For A Big Snack Deal
March 24, 2013 9:08 pm | by Candice Choi, AP Food Industry Writer | News | CommentsThe Purchase, N.Y., company, which dominates the salty snack market with Frito-Lay, issued a short statement Friday after the Telegraph of London said activist investor Nelson Peltz could push it to merge with Mondelez, which is known for sweets including Cadbury and Nabisco.
BP Announces $8B Share Buyback
March 22, 2013 10:08 am | News | CommentsOil company BP says it will buy back $8 billion in shares after completing a complex deal for TNK-BP. BP invested $8 billion in cash, shares and assets when it formed TNK-BP in 2003 and received a total of $19 billion in dividends over the next decade.
Deal To Sell Dell May Be About To Face Competition
March 22, 2013 8:22 am | by Michael Liedtke, AP Business Writer | News | CommentsWith the deadline looming, buyout specialist Blackstone Group is emerging as the most likely candidate to trump the current bid of $13.65 per share. Blackstone is so intrigued with the prospect of owning Dell that the firm has been courting former HP CEO Mark Hurd to run Dell if it decides to mount a hostile takeover attempt, according to a source.
Twinkies $410M Sale Approved By Judge
March 19, 2013 12:44 pm | by Candice Choi, AP Food Industry Writer | News | CommentsHostess Brands Inc. is selling Twinkies, along with Ding Dongs, Ho Hos and other cakes, to a pair of investment firms, Apollo Global Management and Metropoulos & Co., and the head of Metropoluos said he wants to have Twinkies back on shelves by June.
Cynosure Buying Palomar Medical In $294M Deal
March 18, 2013 1:29 pm | News | CommentsCynosure is buying Palomar Medical Technologies Inc. in a cash-and-stock deal valued at about $294 million. Both Cynosure and Palomar's products include cosmetic laser and intense pulsed light systems. Both companies' boards unanimously approved the deal, which is expected to close in the third quarter.
Ericsson And STMicroelectronics Agree On Strategy For ST-Ericsson
March 18, 2013 11:15 am | News | CommentsEricsson will take on the design, development and sales of the LTE multimode thin modem products, including 2G, 3G and 4G multimode, while ST will take on the existing ST-Ericsson products, other than LTE multimode thin modems, and related business as well as certain assembly and test facilities.
EDAC Selling Itself To Greenbriar For About $93.2M
March 18, 2013 11:09 am | News | CommentsEDAC Technologies Corp. said Monday that its board has agreed to sell the aerospace and industrial company to an affiliate of private equity firm Greenbriar Equity Group LLC for about $93.2 million. Under the terms of the agreement, Greenbriar will pay $17.75 per share for the Farmington, Conn.-based company.
Anheuser-Busch: Progress In Talks With U.S. On Deal
March 18, 2013 7:42 am | News | CommentsBeer maker Anheuser-Busch InBev says there has been substantial progress toward a resolution of the U.S. Justice Department's legal challenge to the company's $20.1 billion deal to buy Mexican brewer Grupo Modelo.The companies and the government have asked a federal court to extend a halt to legal activity in the case from March 19 to April 9.
Hostess Picks McKee As Buyer For Drake's Cakes
March 15, 2013 7:58 am | by Candice Choi, AP Food Industry Writer | News | CommentsHostess is moving forward with the sale of Devil Dogs, Yankee Doodles and Yodels to the maker of Little Debbie cakes. The bankrupt company says it picked McKee Foods as the buyer for the Drake's cakes after nobody stepped forward with a qualifying bid to top its $27.5 million offer.
Twinkies Buyers Hungry For More Hostess Cakes
March 13, 2013 8:15 am | by Candice Choi, AP Food Industry Writer | News | CommentsApollo Global Management and Metropoulos & Co., which made a joint offer to snap up the famous cream-filled cakes, have also entered the contest to buy Drake's, which include Devil Dogs and Yodels, according to a source who requested anonymity because the sale process is private.
Dell Rejects Request For Info Leading To Buyout
March 13, 2013 7:49 am | News | CommentsDell has staunchly defended the proposed sale to Michael Dell and Silver Lake as the best deal for the company after evaluating a wide range of other alternatives during a "rigorous" review undertaken by a special committee of four directors that were designated last August after its CEO broached the possibility of a buyout.
Hostess: No Other Bids For Twinkies
March 12, 2013 10:55 am | by Candice Choi, AP Food Industry Writer | News | CommentsThe bankrupt company had earlier picked a joint $410 million offer from Metropoulos & Co. and Apollo Global Management as the lead bid for the cakes. Others were given a chance to make better offers and the CEO of Hostess had predicted the auction would be competitive.
HP's Autonomy Allegations Trigger Another Inquiry
March 12, 2013 7:57 am | News | CommentsThe inquiry by the U.K. Serious Fraud Office is the latest legal fallout from a deal that has saddled Hewlett-Packard Co. with massive losses and depressed its stock price. The U.S. Justice Department started looking into the matter late last year, shortly after HP accused Autonomy employees of fabricating sales.
Genuine Parts Buys Rest Of Exego For About $800M
March 11, 2013 10:45 am | News | CommentsAtlanta-based Genuine Parts bought a 30 percent stake in Exego, an aftermarket distributor of automotive replacement parts and accessories, last year and had an option to buy the rest of the company. The deal price includes the assumption of certain debt, Genuine Parts said.
Gardner Denver Agrees To $3.73B Sale
March 8, 2013 9:32 am | News | CommentsThe industrial pump maker Gardner Denver Inc. has agreed to sell itself to Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. for about $3.73 billion. Under the terms of the agreement, the New York-based investment firm will acquire the Wayne, Pa.-based for $76 per share.
Icahn Proposes Alternative To Dell Buyout
March 7, 2013 8:20 am | News | CommentsIcahn says he favors paying a one-time dividend totaling $9 per share in a move that would allow shareholders to keep their stake in the company. He says that would be more valuable to shareholders than selling it as negotiated by a special committee of independent Dell directors to sell the company to an investment group for $13.65 per share.
Johnson Controls Weighs Auto Electronics Unit Sale
March 7, 2013 7:32 am | News | CommentsJohnson Controls Inc. said Wednesday that it has hired bankers to explore selling its auto electronics business, but denied a report that it is trying to sell its auto interiors unit. The Milwaukee company makes a variety of auto parts, batteries for cars and other products and building products such as heating and ventilation systems.
Dell Committee Defends $24.4B Sale
March 6, 2013 11:50 am | by Michael Liedtke, AP Technology Writer | News | CommentsA special committee of independent board members at Dell has unanimously recommended the proposed $24.4 billion sale of the company. At $13.65 per share, the offer represents a 37 percent premium to the company's average stock price "for the 90 days before rumors regarding the transaction surfaced," the company said Wednesday.
Lexmark To Pay $31.5M For 2 Acquisitions
March 5, 2013 2:00 pm | News | CommentsLexmark International Inc. is buying two smaller companies for a total of $31.5 million as part of its effort to reverse a slump brought on by waning demand for computer prints and ink. The deals announced Tuesday mark Lexmark's seventh and eighth acquisitions during the past three years.
Heinz CEO Entitled To $56M Golden Parachute
March 5, 2013 8:12 am | by Candice Choi, AP Food Industry Writer | News | CommentsHeinz CEO William Johnson is entitled to a golden parachute worth $56 million if he's fired by the company's new owners. The deal lets him walk away with $40 million at any time if he chooses. He would get another $16 million if the new owners were to let him go.
Elan Moves To Deter Takeover Bid
March 4, 2013 10:30 am | by Shawn Pogatchnik, Associated Press | News | CommentsAnalysts said the offer, contingent on Elan's pending sale of its Tysabri rights to partner Biogen Idec Inc., was designed to deter shareholders from considering a takeover bid by Royal Pharma. Elan said it planned to pay shareholders 20 percent of its Tysabri royalties received from Biogen twice annually beginning in the fourth quarter this year.
Danfoss Buying Rest Of Sauer-Danfoss For $692M
March 1, 2013 10:17 am | News | CommentsDanfoss A/S, a Danish maker of valves and other machine parts, will buy the rest of U.S. company Sauer-Danfoss it doesn't already own for about $692 million after raising its offer. Danfoss owns 75.6 percent of Sauer-Danfoss Inc., which makes parts for tractors, backhoe loaders and other agricultural and construction equipment.
Hostess Picks Grupo Bimbo For Beefsteak Bread
March 1, 2013 8:20 am | News | CommentsHostess is choosing Mexico's Grupo Bimbo as the buyer for its Beefsteak bread brand. Hostess said a $31.9 million bid by the maker of Entenmann's cakes beat out another offer by Flowers Foods, which makes Tastykakes and Nature's Own bread. Beefsteak is a regional rye bread available in some states.
Mylan Buying Agila Of India For $1.6B
February 28, 2013 7:48 am | News | CommentsMylan, currently the fourth-largest maker of generic drugs in the world, is buying Agila from Strides Arcolab. It could pay Strides another $250 million based on other undisclosed conditions. Mylan said the deal will give it new generic injectable drugs and will help it enter the market in emerging markets like Brazil.
Hostess Sale Of Wonder Bread Nears Completion
February 27, 2013 11:59 am | by Candice Choi, AP Food Industry Writer | News | CommentsWonder bread is one step closer to getting a new owner. A person familiar with the situation who requested anonymity because the auction process is private says there will be no competing offers Thursday to a bid by Flowers Foods to buy several bread brands from Hostess.
