SEOUL (Reuters) – Shares in South Korea’s No.2 cosmetics company LG Household & Health (051900.KS) leapt by their daily limit to a record high on expectations for its possible purchase of a smaller domestic rival. The Korea Economic Daily reported that LG Household was looking at THEFACESHOP, majority owned by private equity firm Affinity Equity […]
NEW YORK (Reuters) – The U.S. Federal Reserve is looking into proposals for private investment in banks and may come up with further guidelines on how such deals could work, two prominent banking lawyers said on Monday. Such guidance could clarify under what circumstance and deal structures a private investor in a bank would be […]
Odyssey Investment Partners has acquired Safway Group from ThyssenKrupp AG, for an undisclosed amount. Safway is a provider of scaffolding services in the U.S. and Canada.
Update: Golden Gate will soon issue a brief statement over the wires, saying that it "is not and will not be involved in any way with any potential acquisition of Playboy Enterprises Inc.” Golden Gate Capital reportedly is mulling a bid for acquire Playboy Enterprises for approximately $300 million, in concert with former company executive Jim Griffiths. This is separate from Playboy's reported talks with Iconix Group, although the two sides might ultimately partner up. The possibility of this deal just goes to show that the private equity industry's antipathy toward "sin" investing is basically buried. It wasn't too long ago that many firms would avoid anything having to do with pornography, liquor or weapons. In fact, such restrictions were often includes in limited partnership agreements. But now we've got Golden Gate interested in Playboy, Cerberus taking a rifle maker public and just about everyone buying beer companies. A handful of LPs still insist on exemptions for such deals -- mostly small religious organizations -- but the other investors just pick up the difference. In short, sin is in.
When HP recently agreed to buy 3Com for $2.7 billion, we learned two things: (1) The deal announcement was preceded by brazen insider trading, and (2) 3Com is one of few publicly-traded tech companies whose value has risen more than 20% since last fall's financial collapse (based on how much Bain Capital was planning to pay in 2007, before the feds intervened). Today we got updates on both issues. Bloomberg reports that the SEC is investigating the insider trading situation, in which trading volume on $5 strike calls grew by 40x just hours before HP sent out its press releases. It's obviously a welcome development, and perhaps signals that the SEC is finally getting tough on an illicit epidemic that has run rampant for years. Why it never did anything during the buyout boomtimes of 2006 and 2007 -- when option volume regularly bloomed before a take-private offer was made
(Reuters) – Select Comfort Corp (SCSS.O) said it amended its credit agreement through June 2011, which will provide the bedding retailer with initial financing of up to $55 million, sending its shares up as much as 5 percent in morning trade. The company, which has been struggling with softer sales as thrifty shoppers cut discretionary […]
Last week, three mid-market firms scored big exits and, get this–they were not by IPO. On Monday, Thoma Bravo scored a 4x return on its sale of Datatel to Hellman & Friedman and JMI Equity. Five days later, Sun Capital made 5.25x its money selling Timothy’s Coffees to Green Mountain Roasters Inc., while Castle Harlan and its […]
Pharos Capital Group has acquired Rush Tracking Systems, a Kansas City-based RFID business process consulting and systems integration company. No financial terms were disclosed.
NEW YORK (Reuters) – Simmons Co, maker of the Beautyrest mattress and other bedding products, has filed for bankruptcy protection and expects to be sold to two buyers in a transaction valued at roughly $760 million. Private equity firm Ares Management LLC and the Teachers’ Private Capital unit of the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan, which […]
(Reuters) – Citigroup Inc (C.N) recently rejected a proposal from Guy Hands’ private equity firm Terra Firma Capital Partners to restructure the debt of music group EMI, the Wall Street Journal said on Monday. The buyout firm had offered to inject about 1 billion pounds ($1.67 billion) into EMI in exchange for Citigroup waving a […]