Mergers & Acquisitions - Week Ending 03/16/12
On Monday, Asahi Kasei purchased Zoll Medical, a healthcare equipment maker, for $2.2
billion. This is the latest in a string of international deals by Japanese
companies looking to compensate for sluggish domestic numbers. The chemical
company was up 0.2% as Zoll was boosted 24%, mirroring the premium offered. Aeroports de Paris bought a 38 percent stake in Turkish operator TAV
Havalimanlari for $874 million. This is in line with the French group's
strategy which looks to invest in airports which have strong growth potential
in the OECD or BRIC countries. The buyer gained 0.4%. Chinese video site Youku will merge with its rival Tudou in a deal valued at $1.1 billion.
This comes in the midst of regulatory threats and significant losses for the
two firms. It’s their hope that consolidation will allow for increased
efficiency in their content and monetisation capability. Tudou was jumped a
massive 156% as Youku increased by 27.4%. Also that day, UnionBanCal Corp took
over Pacific Capital Bancorp for $1.5 billion. The buyer feels that the
improving economy will allow for a credit mark up on Pacific's loans, which weren’t
previously expected to perform well. The bidder’s parent, Mitsubishi UFJ
Financial, lost 1.4% while the target closed 57% higher.
The following
day, tyre corporation TBC merged with Midas in a $310 million all-cash deal.
They believe that significant value can be added by combining TBC's expertise
and capital with Midas' platform. The automotive repair franchise was up 1.6%. Apollo Global Management acquired Great Wolf Resort for $703 million. The
private equity firm was attracted to the water park operator's strong revenue
growth in spite of their profitability issues. Apollo fell just over 0.1% on the
news. Also that day, Dell agreed to buy data security firm SonicWall. The
move, which was estimated to be worth $1.25 billion, will significantly
strengthen Dell's security software portfolio. The tech giant grew 1.6%.
Thursday saw further action in the tech sector as News Corporation and
Permira sold software maker NDS to Cisco Systems for $5 billion. The software
mogul feels that the streaming and security program company will help grow its
video services. The seller increased by 0.9% while the buyer dropped 1.4%. The
following day, it was announced that Sanofi would take over medical device
firm Pluromed for an undisclosed amount. This will allow the bidder to expand
its biomed portfolio with products like Rapid Transition Polymers and ‘LeGoo’,
a pioneering endovascular gel for the occlusion of blood vessels. The
healthcare company closed 0.2% higher. Also that day, Astral Media was
acquired by Bell Canada for $3.4 billion. The group's diversification has
been noticeable in the past year, with it absorbing CTV and several
Toronto-based sports teams. The communications provider dropped 1.05%, as
Astral was boosted 34%.
