United States of America

New US chairman-CEO focus may bring welcome split

17 Jan 2012

JPMorgan’s Jamie Dimon is among those a U.S. union is targeting for serving in both top jobs. Some business grandees are also ramping up efforts against corporate autocracy. Like “say on pay,” a UK-style division of the two roles could have its long overdue day stateside.

Ex-American Idol boss readies own tech audition

17 Jan 2012

Robert Sillerman, the onetime concert promoter and TV talent show mogul, is back with a new idea. A little cash, a listed shell and the buzzy concept of socially networked TV is now a big stake in a $1 bln company. But the venture so far only has an X factor in clever finance.

Softly way on Indian governance may pay for T. Rowe

17 Jan 2012

T. Rowe Price of the U.S. has 26 pct of UTI, the Indian fund manager. But it can’t seem to agree with co-owners about who should run the business. New Delhi may want its say too. There’s talk of sticky rifts but the best way forward might be to embrace firm-but-quiet compromise.

JPMorgan deserves a little more investor love

13 Jan 2012

Though Q4 results weren’t great, the House of Dimon is lending more, cutting losses and banker pay and beating its cost of capital. It should also be able to lift its dividend. And yet JPMorgan stock languishes below book value. It’s time for shareholders to overcome their fear.

At least Obama knows which agencies he’s cutting

13 Jan 2012

The president is making good on promises to shrink the bureaucracy by merging six federal agencies and cutting up to 2,000 jobs. Though politically clever, it’s a bitty fix. Repairing America’s fiscal imbalances will require deeper cuts and more creative measures than this.

Antitrust watchdog rivalry may spell M&A trouble

12 Jan 2012

The U.S. Justice Department surpassed the Federal Trade Commission in antitrust enforcement last year. But signs that the FTC will block pharmacy provider Omnicare’s bid for PharMerica suggest a new hard line. Competing cops on the beat could gum up Wall Street’s deal machine.

Corporate America finds Doppelganger in Romney

12 Jan 2012

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce outlined plans to cut red tape, lower tax rates, boost energy production and expand trade, replicating nearly digit-for-digit the anatomy of the GOP front-runner’s campaign. It makes Romney look like a useful technocrat - or an agent of Big Business.

U.S. broker fire-sale thwarts shrinking banks

12 Jan 2012

Regions Financial fetched just $930 mln - two-thirds of initial estimates - for decent performer Morgan Keegan. But the U.S. lender needs the cash. With European banks alone trying to offload some $2 trln of assets, the Keegan deal underscores it’s a serious buyer’s market.

US gas driller stock still too hot for cold prices

12 Jan 2012

Natural gas prices in the U.S. are near decade lows and sliding. Yet despite Wednesday’s declines, gas drillers like Cabot - the biggest S&P 500 gainer last year - continue to trade on richer multiples than extractors of dearer oil. The current valuations can’t be justified.

Fed profit shows it’s in the market but not of it

11 Jan 2012

The U.S. central bank is handing the Treasury $77 bln of its 2011 profit, a hair under the 2010 record. That’s three-quarters of what all the nation’s commercial banks collectively make in a year. It’s a reminder that the Fed plays big these days - but by different rules.

Carlyle’s big payday does private equity no favors

11 Jan 2012

David Rubenstein and two partners pocketed $400 mln of profits last year. The 99 pct - pensioners investing in Carlyle funds - did well alongside them. But the lower tax rate paid by the buyout barons cost Uncle Sam some $80 mln. The timing of Carlyle’s disclosure is impeccable.

Double-dipping Twinkies tarnish bankruptcy process

11 Jan 2012

Chapter 11 is supposed to give crippled companies a fresh start. Yet, Hostess, the maker of iconic American junk food, has gone bust just three years after emerging from bankruptcy court. Such recidivism should make investors more skeptical about the court’s cleansing power.

Ron Paul’s staying power threatens to alter debate

11 Jan 2012

The New Hampshire primary results keep the outspoken libertarian in the hunt for the Republican nomination. Paul’s strong showing also could inspire him to make a third-party run. His continued presence will shift the discussion on sound money, spending and U.S. isolationism.

Canuck railroad could gain from dose of Ackman

11 Jan 2012

A key measure of productivity puts Canadian Pacific dead last among North America’s big six railways. Even if a proxy fight being waged by Ackman’s Pershing Square fund isn’t successful, it could inject some healthy ambition in the company’s turnaround plan.

Asia’s MDs lose their pink-slip immunity

11 Jan 2012

BofA’s cull of over a dozen high-ranking bankers in the region partly reflects unique problems. But rivals also want to cut costs as well as headcount, making seniority no safeguard. As Asian fees fall, only those with strong cash engines can hang on and hope the cycle turns.

Private equity skewered by Romney-bound arrows

10 Jan 2012

The assault from fellow Republicans on the front-runner’s record at Bain makes for an absurd spectacle. Huntsman’s family business agreed to an LBO while Gingrich advised Teddy Forstmann. The slings won’t derail Romney, but the collateral damage could hurt the buyout industry.

Campaign-mode Obama leaves economy to luck

10 Jan 2012

After the August debt ceiling fight, the White House said it would focus on jobs. But recent initiatives look like vote-grabbing gimmicks. Politics makes meaningful action tough. Still, a hands-off approach could backfire if voters don’t feel more warmth of recovery by November.

Time to think small in stock exchange M&A

10 Jan 2012

If Brussels vetoes Deutsche Boerse’s merger with NYSE, the deal will join Australian and Canadian takeovers on the scrapheap. Exchanges battling legal change and weak markets could use merger-led cost cuts. But from now on big deals will be the exception, not the rule.

Apple ties Cook into Jobs’ boots – at a price

10 Jan 2012

The maker of functional but expensive gadgets now has a $376 mln CEO retention plan to match. Tim Cook will get that if he’s around for a decade. He deserves much after standing in for Steve Jobs, and Apple needs continuity. But in future the board can pay Cook more like Jobs.

Detroit faces first real post-crisis test in 2012

10 Jan 2012

The Big Three U.S. carmakers can now make money on fewer sales and are revving up a variety of decent products. But they’ve also benefited from rivals’ woes, not least the Japan earthquake. The playing field looks more level than it has in years. That’ll expose any shortcomings.