Shares of Restoration Hardware rose as much as 34 percent during their market debut on Friday. The upscale furniture retailer, backed by private equity firms Catterton Partners and Tower Three Partners LLC, opened New York Stock Exchange trading at $32.05 after pricing at the high end of the expected range at $24.
1 min read · 02 November 2012
Advance Auto Parts Inc. has hired investment bank Blackstone Advisory to explore a potential sale to private equity, two people familiar with the matter said on Thursday, in a deal that could top $6 billion, Reuters wrote. The auto parts retailer, which sells parts, accessories, batteries and maintenance items to both do-it-yourself and commercial customers, has attracted initial interest from several private equity firms, one of the people said.
2 min read · 02 November 2012
A $1.7 billion bid for Malaysia's two main KFC fast food franchisees faces a growing chorus of opposition from investors challenging the terms of the offer that is nearly a year old and now looks to them badly undervalued, Reuters reported Friday. A showdown is looming on Nov. 5 and 6, when shareholders vote on the deal. Some investors contacted by Reuters said they planned to vote against the bid but it was not clear if they had enough firepower to do so. The bid for KFC Holdings (Malaysia) and QSR Brands Bhd was made last December by the investment arm of Malaysia's Johor state and CVC Capital Partners. The Employee Provident Fund joined the consortium in May.
4 min read · 02 November 2012
Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway Inc. said it would buy direct marketing toy and party supplies company Oriental Trading Co. for an undisclosed sum. Berkshire will pay $500 million, the Wall Street Journal reported on Friday, citing a person involved in the deal. Oriental Trading, which filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in August 2010, is owned by more than a dozen financial institutions.
1 min read · 02 November 2012
Furniture retailer Restoration Hardware priced its initial public offering at $24 a share on Thursday, at the top of its expected range, an underwriter said. The company, backed by private equity firms Catterton Partners and Tower Three Partners LLC, raised $123.9 million by pricing 5.2 million shares as planned. Restoration Hardware had intended to price shares at $22 to $24 per share.
2 min read · 02 November 2012
There is a chant commonly overheard in the Bronx, that we can't print in a family publication. However, between Bobby Valentine's track record as a manager and Curt Schilling's history as an investor, that two-word chant seems more apt today, perhaps than ever before.
2 min read · 01 November 2012
JDA Software Group Inc., a maker of supply-chain management software, agreed to be bought by privately held rival RedPrairie for about $1.9 billion in cash. The $45 per-share offer represents an 18 percent premium over JDA's Wednesday close. JDA shares, which closed at $38.15 on the Nasdaq, rose to $44.76 on Thursday morning. Reuters reported on Monday, citing sources, that JDA was exploring a sale and had hired JPMorgan Chase & Co. as adviser.
2 min read · 01 November 2012
A subsidiary of China Investment Corporation, the country's sovereign wealth fund, is buying a 10 percent stake in the UK's Heathrow Airport, state news agency Xinhua reported on Thursday. The Xinhua report follows a statement from Spanish infrastructure company, Ferrovial, on Wednesday that it had sold a 5.72 percent stake in Heathrow holding company FGP Topco to China's Stable Investment Corporation for 319.3 million euros ($414 million).
1 min read · 01 November 2012
ProSieben has attracted three offers worth more than 1.3 billion euros ($1.7 billion) for its Nordic TV channels, Reuters reported on Wednesday, which may help to reduce the group's debt. The bidders are private equity firms Nordic Capital and Providence Equity Partners as well as cable network Discovery Communications, Reuters wrote.
2 min read · 01 November 2012
Asia buyout firm Olympus Capital is leading an investor group that has injected $50 million to expand China's Huaxia Dairy Farm Ltd., a company that produces the raw milk that is in short supply in China's growing dairy sector, Reuters reported Thursday. This is the second Olympus-led injection into Huaxia. Last year the firm led a group including European dairy firm Mueller Milch Management that invested $45 million for a minority stake.
2 min read · 01 November 2012
