Software

Nvidia gives Arm IPO a double leg-up

4 Sep 2023

The $1.2 trln semiconductor designer’s AI-inflated stock price provides a following wind for the UK group’s float. Now Nvidia and two peers may endorse its valuation by buying into Arm’s offering. Owner SoftBank will be hoping other investors buy into the somewhat circular logic.

Capital Calls: Microsoft in the EU, Dollar General

31 Aug 2023

Concise views on global finance: The software giant will sell its Teams communications app separately from other software in the European Union; the discount retailer’s poor results reflect a more resilient US economy.

Instacart’s mixed bag has valuation opportunities

28 Aug 2023

The food delivery firm is worth far less than its high point in 2021. The cost to get new customers is rising, too. But a push to sell ads, a sensible business, could help bring its valuation close to $17 bln. As long as Instacart is reasonable, it can get its listing, finally.

Capital Calls: Selling Salesforce

15 Aug 2023

Concise views on global finance: After successfully agitating for change at the $200 bln software developer, Jeff Smith’s Starboard and Dan Loeb’s Third Point are offloading their stakes. It’s probably a good time to pocket gains considering the challenges ahead for Big Tech.

Capital Calls: Exor/Philips

14 Aug 2023

Concise views on global finance: The Agnelli family is making a well-timed bet on the troubled 18 bln euro conglomerate that makes everything from toothbrushes to defibrillators.

Big Tech is mostly leaping a low bar

10 Aug 2023

The stock market’s mood increasingly hinges on the vagaries of tech giants like Meta, Amazon and Apple. In this Viewsroom podcast, Breakingviews columnists discuss how most of their recent earnings held up – even if only compared to muted expectations for their core businesses.

WeWork multitasked when it had just one job

9 Aug 2023

The office subletter conceded it might collapse, just months after a debt-for-equity recapitalization and four years since a funding round valued it at $47 bln. Mismanagement, hype and debt-fueled growth are to blame. Rival IWG suggests the business model works if kept in check.

ICE cuts tortuous path through frosty trustbusters

7 Aug 2023

It took 15 months, two divestitures and an 11% discount, but Black Knight’s $12 bln sale to the NYSE operator is set to close after deal enforcers dropped a lawsuit. It’s a small sign that even FTC chief Lina Khan can see clear to settle, if merger participants concede enough.

Hey Siri: Screen iPhone calls on Apple’s valuation

3 Aug 2023

The handset that anchors the $3 trln company is due an update soon. Loyal fans will buy it, but most customers are upgrading more slowly. The trend makes it hard to justify paying twice the multiple of earnings as five years ago, despite the record quarterly services revenue.

France wins more than Kretinsky in Atos breakup

1 Aug 2023

Billionaire Daniel Kretinsky will buy the IT group’s older assets for 2 bln euros including debt. Paris will be pleased that the other, sexier cybersecurity division stays French. Meanwhile the Czech tycoon gets the ailing unit with little relevance to his other recent purchases.

Amazon-EU web content spat is all about grey areas

20 Jul 2023

The $1.4 trln e-commerce giant is fighting Brussels’ decision to class it as a large online platform and hence face extra scrutiny. Given its size, Amazon’s challenge at first looks like a long shot. Yet the legislation’s vague language creates scope for disputes.

AI’s deflationary winds will blow away profits

27 Jun 2023

Artificial intelligence could add $8 trln a year to world GDP, McKinsey estimates, defying the gloom about robots replacing humans. Though companies should benefit from lower costs, consumers could use the technology to find better deals. It all adds up to lower prices.

Bain’s Swiss software bid merits hard pushback

20 Jun 2023

SoftwareOne rejected a $3 bln offer from the US buyout group. The bidder’s alliance with the founding shareholders puts it in a stronger position than with a recent approach for a similarly named company. But the returns look juicy, meaning it can probably afford to pay more.

Capital Calls: Zee, Embracer

13 Jun 2023

Concise views on global finance: India’s securities regulator banned the media group’s CEO from holding any key managerial positions, putting its merger with Sony’s local unit under a cloud; the $3 bln video-game group’s new strategy hits the right buttons.

Nasdaq futureproofs itself, but at 2021 prices

12 Jun 2023

Buying fintech firm Adenza for $10.5 bln adds vim to CEO Adena Friedman’s plan to reduce Nasdaq’s reliance on volatile markets. Yet the price, which includes a 15% stake for seller Thoma Bravo, is high. To justify it, Friedman needs bubbly tech valuations to make a comeback.

Gaming transatlantic gap invites M&A shoot-’em-up

9 Jun 2023

Shares in European gaming groups like Ubisoft are off by a fifth over the past year, underperforming stateside peers. Self-inflicted slip-ups are partly to blame, but players’ love for US-owned blockbusters means the valuation divide will endure. Dealmaking is a likely endgame.

Apple could overcome VR’s nerd and creepy factors

6 Jun 2023

Past attempts at virtual and augmented reality failed because the devices looked embarrassing, and the firms behind these efforts seemed untrustworthy. The headset the $2.8 trillion tech company rolled out on Monday isn’t an obvious success in its current form, but Apple has a better shot than others.

AI speed benefits now apply to EU boycott U-turns

26 May 2023

On Wednesday Sam Altman threatened to quit Europe if it “over-regulates” his booming startup OpenAI. He’s now rapidly rowed back. As with their disruptive new technology, AI mavens may have a shrewder sense than older US peers of when to stop poking the Brussels bear.

Intuit investors bet on Uncle Sam’s inept tech

24 May 2023

The US may allow consumers to file taxes online, bypassing private software. Surveys suggest a free option could threaten up to $2.9 bln in revenue from Intuit’s TurboTax arm. The $120 bln company and its shareholders are relying on the state failing to get its act together.

AI boom could expose investors’ natural stupidity

19 May 2023

Corporate leaders and money managers are jumping on the artificial intelligence bandwagon. The study of behavioural economics suggests people are easily carried away by hype. Some of the limits of human reason may also apply to supposedly smart machines, writes Felix Martin.