Preliminary first quarter figures compiled by Thomson Reuters show that M&A activity in the Asia-Pacific region has dropped 42.7% since this time last year. The data, which includes Japanese M&A volumes, highlights that deal levels since the start of January have amounted to US$75.4bn, generated from 2,006 deals, compared to last year’s total of US$131.6bn. […]
Lion Capital has agreed to acquire an 18% stake in clothing retailer American Apparel (AMX: APP) for $80 million in secured second lien notes maturing December 31, 2013 with detachable warrants.
On Tuesday, I mused about the exit troubles facing mega-buyout firms:
Isn’t an IPO the only viable exit option for a market leader that was taken private (Clear Channel, SunGard, HCA, etc.)? The only way to get a trade sale would be to run the company into the ground (buy the best company, make it second-best), while sponsor-to-sponsor deals are unlikely due to both high leverage loads on the original deal and the likelihood of an original consortium (i.e., fewer firms left to sell to).
As some commenters noted, it seems that I forgot an obvious answer: The strip and flip.
JLL Partners has submitted a formal offer to buy Patheon Inc. (TSX: PTI) for $2 per share. The move comes less than a month after Patheon said that such an offer “significantly undervalues” the company. JLL already holds a 30% stake in Patheon, which provides contract development and manufacturing services to the global pharmaceutical industry.
CCC Information Services and Mitchell International Inc. have called off their $1.4 billion merger, after a federal court granted an FTC request for a preliminary injunction. According to Reuters, the FTC had argued that the merger would “in the market for electronic systems used to estimate how much repairs will cost after a collision and how to value totaled cars.” CCC is a Chicago-based portfolio company of Investcorp, while Mitchell is a San Diego-based portfolio company of Aurora Capital Group.
Charlotte Russe Holding Inc. (Nasdaq: CHIC), a women’s apparel retailer, is recommending that its shareholders reject a slate of three board nominees made by Allan Karp of KarpReilly Capital Partners, because it could represent a conflict of interest. KarpReilly currently controls around 8.6% of the company, and has offered to buy out the remainder. In related news, Charlotte Russe announced that it has instructed financial advisor Cowen & Co. to initiate a sale process.
US private equity investor Carlyle has agreed to accept US$234m from Russian steel maker Novolipetsk in compensation for the latter’s aborted US$3.5bn acquisition of portfolio company John Maneely. Originally the Russian group agreed to purchase the US steel producer last August, after agreeing a loan of US$2bn to finance the acquisition. However, in November Novolipetsk […]
PHILADELPHIA (Reuters) – Apparel maker Quiksilver Inc (ZQK.N) has hired investment bank Peter J. Solomon to help find funding or an investor, sources familiar with the situation said on Wednesday. Quiksilver, which posted a smaller-than-expected quarterly loss on Wednesday, is seeking to raise funds in Europe or find an investor to buy a stake in […]
NEW YORK (Reuters) – Aleris International Inc TXPACA.UL, the bankrupt maker of aluminum rolled products, on Wednesday said it would delay a court hearing to approve its $1.075 billion bankruptcy loan as it works out details with its creditors. The privately held aluminum recycler, which filed for bankruptcy on Feb 12, already has received interim […]
Remember when PE firms backed out of signed deals in droves? They looked like jerks at the time, but in retrospect, they were probably smart to avoid the overpriced, highly leveraged deals they had aggressively pursued for the past three years. Taking into account the Dow’s record breaking drops last year, and assuming that a company’s stock price reflects its health, let’s look at the stock performance of 2008’s busted take-private targets and recoil at the premiums PE firms might have paid.