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Strategies & Market Trends : Speculating in Takeover Targets -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: richardred who wrote (3865)	1/2/2015 6:11:22 AM
From: richardred	Respond to of 7159

Deal Makers Notched Nearly $3.5 Trillion Worth in ’14, Best in 7 Years By almost every measure, 2014 was a time for deal makers to pop the corks of their Champagne bottles. The year was one of the best for mergers and acquisitions since the passing of the financial crisis. Some 40,298 transactions — worth nearly $3.5 trillion — were announced worldwide in 2014, according to Thomson Reuters, fulfilling the hopes of an industry that has bet on such a resurgence for some time. It was the biggest year in deals since 2007. Many of the factors responsible for the rebound in mergers activity since the tumult of 2008 have existed for years. Debt financing is cheap and plentiful, and stock prices have climbed steadily, giving corporate buyers a more valuable currency to offer potential targets. Perhaps the biggest change, deal makers say, is that corporate boards and management teams have come to realize that their ability to expand their companies on their own has become more difficult. A substantial move, like acquiring a major competitor or complementary business, is now seen as necessary to move the needle. And with some semblance of predictability having descended upon the markets — the Standard & Poor’s 500-stock index rose 11.4 percent last year, with only a few bouts of heart-stopping volatility — boards feel more comfortable taking the plunge. Investors have also supported more aggressive growth measures. The stock prices of acquirers continued on average to rise, indicating that shareholders backed those transactions. “The large equity institutions are giving companies the benefit of the doubt in this market,” said Peter A. Weinberg, a co-founder of the boutique investment bank Perella Weinberg Partners. “This opens up a range of possibilities beyond the default use of capital, which is repurchasing stock. If shareholders say ‘stay still,’ it’s very difficult to do anything bold.” The busiest sectors for the year have been the oil and gas industry, with 11.7 percent of the merger market and $409 billion worth of transactions, and the pharmaceuticals industry, with 6 percent market share and $210 billion worth of deals. Yet the biggest deals of the year, including the assumption of debt, have been game-changing takeovers in the telecommunications industry. Comcast has bid for a nationwide footprint with its $45 billion proposal to buy Time Warner Cable, while AT&T hopes to gain greater scale by buying DirecTV in a deal valued at $49 billion. The question now is whether the confluence of factors that enabled the merger revival will carry over into 2015 . Corporate advisers contend that investors have shown a remarkable ability to cope with a surge of headline-grabbing news, like the flare-ups in Ukraine and the Middle East and the Ebola outbreak. And the possibility of the Federal Reserve’s raising interest rates has been well telegraphed and factored into companies’ decision-making. Not even the plummeting of oil prices has dented the enthusiasm of would-be buyers. Indeed, leveraged buyout executives — who have been left out of the deal feeding frenzy, outbid by strategic buyers — have been salivating at the prospect of new acquisition targets. “There’s comfort with the new normal, postcrisis,” Mr. Weinberg said. “C.E.O.s and boards know there’s always going to be uncertainty.” dealbook.nytimes.com

To: richardred who wrote (3865)	1/27/2015 10:24:28 AM
From: richardred	Respond to of 7159

Hershey close to acquiring healthy snacks company Krave -sources Jan 27 (Reuters) - Chocolate maker Hershey Co is in late-stage talks to acquire Krave, a maker of healthy beef, turkey and pork jerky snacks, according to people familiar with the matter. The deal is expected to value Sonoma, California-based Krave at between $200 million and $300 million, the people said this week. An announcement could come as soon as this week, they added. Consolidation in the so-called better-for-you snacking category has picked up in the last year as consumers' eating habits have begun to shift. Recent deals have included JM Smucker Co's acquisition of fruits and nuts manufacturer Sahale Snacks in August and TreeHouse Foods Inc's purchase of trail mix maker Flagstone Foods in June. The U.S. snack industry is a $35 billion market, according to market research firm IBISWorld, with annual growth of around 4 percent. finance.yahoo.com P.S. <o> Wink

To: richardred who wrote (3865)	6/11/2015 1:32:50 PM
From: richardred	Respond to of 7159

Permira Buys PopCorners as Dealmakers Remain Hungry for Healthy Options Campbell Soup and ConAgra have also made better-for-you food deals recently By Allison Collins June 10, 2015 As dealmakers continue to crave better-for-you snack deals, private equity firm Permira is buying Medora Snacks LLC and Ideal Snacks Holding Corp. Medora, headquartered in Middletown, New York, makes PopCorners, PopCorners Whole Grain, Pop Crinkles and popped bean chips. Liberty, New York-based Ideal is a contract manufacturer for popped snacks. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. London-based Permira will combine the two companies into one holding company called BFY Holdings I LLC, based in New York. Since 1985, Permira has raised more than $28 billion and invested in more than 200 companies. In October, Permira agreed to sell specialty chemicals maker Arysta LifeScience Ltd. to Platform Specialty Products. In March 2014, the firm sold Renaissance Learning to Hellman & Friedman. The firm's other portfolio companies include Ancestry.com, Dr. Martens, LegalZoom and Telepizza. In the food sector, dealmakers are mirroring consumers as they shift their choices towards healthier snack options. "We are in the midst of a seismic shift within the food industry in which consumers are actively seeking out healthier snack products while not sacrificing taste," says Permira partner John Coyle. Recent better-for-you food deals include Campbell Soup Co.'s (NYSE: CPB) acquisition of Garden Fresh Gourmet for $231 million, announced on June 9, and ConAgra Foods Inc.'s (NYSE: CAG) purchase of organic frozen meal business Blake's All Natural Foods. For more on the trend, see Snack Time. themiddlemarket.com P.S. Message 29439856

To: richardred who wrote (3865)	10/23/2015 10:00:01 AM
From: richardred	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 7159

Diamond Foods (DMND) Stock Soaring on Kellogg Merger Speculationhttp://www.thestreet.com/story/13336140/1/diamond-foods-dmnd-stock-soaring-on-kellogg-merger-speculation.html?puc=yahoo&cm_ven=YAHOO Possible bringing Pringles and Kettle chips together. LNCE's Cape Cod Has a great Kettle chip brand. Lance's Cape Cod also sells pop corn. More speculative appeal on my thread tracking SITT pick LNCE IMO If K bites than GIS or HSY should be ready to follow. Message 29839778 Message 27983037 Message 29439856