Private Equity

Corona Capital: U.S. tests, UK loans, Man U groans

21 Oct 2020

Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: Abbott Laboratories has a bumper third quarter; UK banks look at a workaround for their Covid-19 loan problem; and Manchester United reveals a predictably ropey set of annual results.

The Exchange: Private equity and the pandemic

21 Oct 2020

BC Partners is an alternative asset manager whose portfolio companies include PetSmart and Springer Nature. Partner Nikos Stathopoulos chats to Peter Thal Larsen about managing during Covid-19, new investment challenges, and why we need to get back to face-to-face meetings.

KPN adds Dutch fibre to Europe telco buyout buffet

12 Oct 2020

Private equity firm EQT is sizing up the Dutch phone operator, according to Bloomberg. Worth 16 bln euros including debt, it’s a major meal even before the government weighs in. Smaller operators in Europe’s bombed-out telecoms sector may make simpler and tastier treats.

Corona Capital: NBA, Polish e-commerce, Tesco

12 Oct 2020

Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: A major basketball bake-off fails to pull in the online crowds; Poland’s biggest e-commerce company flies from the shelves; and UK grocer Tesco wrestles with supply chain problems.

Peltz puts the squeeze on middle-weight money men

2 Oct 2020

The activist’s fund Trian has taken big stakes in investment firms Invesco and Janus and wants to roll them up. Taking on powerhouses like BlackRock requires industry consolidation as low rates and fee pressure bite. Peltz may also benefit from good old-fashioned market timing.

Walmart pays price for late UK checkout

30 Sep 2020

The retail giant may sell grocer Asda to buyout firm TDR and two petrol station tycoons for $8.3 bln. It’s a cheaper and riskier exit than a planned union with peer J Sainsbury, thwarted by watchdogs last year. Online competition, a pandemic, and Brexit have weakened its hand.

Italy’s top soccer league needs a kick in the culo

30 Sep 2020

Once a global champion, Serie A now trails rivals in Europe on revenue and visibility. A 1.6 bln euro deal by sports-investing veteran CVC seeks to double sales by rebooting an outdated media rights system. Stronger finances would benefit clubs and make for better football.

KKR takes risky punt on 20th century office life

28 Sep 2020

The buyout giant has taken a 5% stake in landlord Great Portland Estates. Investors are pricing in a 30% virus-linked drop in rents or asset values. For KKR to be on the winning side, a shift in working patterns will need to be distinctly cyclical, not structural.

UK bookie bidding war may have two winners

25 Sep 2020

William Hill shares rose 38% after it said Caesars Entertainment and Apollo made rival approaches. Neither will make a decent return at its current market value of $4 bln. Better to opt for a carve-up, with the casino operator taking the U.S. unit and the buyout group the rest.

Corona Capital: Newspaper rivals, College football

17 Sep 2020

Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: the Wall Street Journal hits up the New York Times’ printing presses; U.S. college football’s Big Ten makes a comeback.

Corona Capital: Testing, Flights, Football

10 Sep 2020

Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: U.S. lab-testing group Quest announces speedy growth; IAG’s gloomy horizons have a silver lining; and NFL football comes charging back.

Buyout baron special pleading faces uphill battle

9 Sep 2020

A UK review of capital gains taxes may close the infamous carried interest loophole. Private equity’s threats to move abroad have less force since others, like U.S. presidential candidate Joe Biden, are also hostile. The industry’s growing heft makes it a bigger global target.

Reliance becoming the envy of big conglomerates

9 Sep 2020

Silver Lake’s purchase of a 1.75% stake values the shopping arm of Mukesh Ambani’s empire at $57 bln. KKR wants in too. It prices up the third pillar, after the core energy unit and digital platform Jio, without a discount. The tycoon’s challenge will be to keep it that way.

SoftBank shows true colours with U.S. tech binge

7 Sep 2020

Masayoshi Son’s conglomerate has bought $30 bln of exposure to U.S. tech stocks with $4 bln of call options, media reports say. It’s yet another risky proposition that exposes the company’s weak governance. Months of steady progress suggest more buybacks might have been better.

Apollo and Abu Dhabi scratch each other’s backs

2 Sep 2020

A consortium led by the private equity titan has struck a $2.7 billion deal for a 49% stake in a real estate company held by the emirate’s energy group ADNOC. Apollo-linked insurers snap up long-term secure assets. Abu Dhabi gets a cash injection from selling the family silver.

SoftBank divestitures set stage to shop again soon

1 Sep 2020

Offloading a 22% stake in the Japanese telecom arm will help reach a $41 bln fundraising target set in March. Chip designer Arm may go too. Prodding from Elliott has helped SoftBank shares more than double, but boss Masayoshi Son is a buyer at heart. He must be getting itchy.

Telecom Italia network spinoff is imperfect

1 Sep 2020

Selling a chunk of its grid to KKR for 1.8 bln euros should help the operator fund investment in faster connections. Other indebted European telcos may follow. But a messy merger with state-backed rival Open Fiber risks choking competition and stalling Italy’s broadband upgrade.

Buffett’s cheap yen buys Japanese doppelgangers

31 Aug 2020

Berkshire Hathaway invested in Japan’s five big trading houses, an atypical move exploiting the country’s cheap borrowing costs to buy stakes in discounted, unloved conglomerates. The thesis is clever, if narcissistic. But it could lock Berkshire in Japan’s infamous value trap.

Veolia’s trash dominance drive is worth the money

31 Aug 2020

The French water-and-waste group is at last pouncing on rival Suez. The 15.50 euros a share cash bid for Engie’s 30% stake is ballsy as a full takeover will face antitrust scrutiny. Yet the returns look attractive. Jumping on the green economy bandwagon should pay off over time.

BT would be high-risk private equity double play

24 Aug 2020

The UK telecoms group is bolstering its takeover defences, according to Sky. Political baggage and a 10 bln pound pension gap help its cause. But depressed shares point to breakup potential, and a new owner may think it can manage BT’s daunting long-term investment needs better.