Corvex and Icahn to Mull Making a Bid for Energen (Reuters)
BOSTON (Reuters) – Activist investor Keith Meister on Monday reunited with billionaire investor Carl Icahn and said in a regulatory filing that they may try to buy oil and gas producer Energen Corp. (EGN.N). The announcement comes roughly two months after the Birmingham, Alabama-based company settled a long-simmering fight with Meister’s New York-based hedge fund Corvex Management by agreeing to review its businesses and adding two members to the board. Now Meister and Icahn have laid out a path where they might step into the strategic review process and prepare to take over the company themselves.
Why This Billionaire Hedge Fund Manager Wants to Break Up United Technologies (The Motley Fool)
In his letter to investors, Activist investor Dan Loeb‘s said that his hedge fund Third Point initiated a “significant stake” in United Technologies Corporation (NYSE:UTX) in the fourth quarter of 2017, and said, “Third Point did not invest in UTC for what it is today, but for what it could become.” In a nutshell, Loeb’s investment is based on a sum-of-the-parts analysis of the company that yields a valuation of around $190 to $210 per share, compared to the current price of $124. Loeb’s view is that the best way to release the intrinsic value in the company is by breaking it up. Let’s take a look at his arguments and judge whether they are valid or not.
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Hitachi Ready to Buy Elliott’s Stake in Ansaldo STS (Reuters)
MILAN (Reuters) – Japan’s Hitachi is ready to buy U.S. fund Elliott’s stake in Ansaldo STS (STS.MI) to take full control of the Italian rail-signalling company, the head of Hitachi Rail (6501.T) said on Monday. Hitachi and investment funds led by Elliot have been feuding since the Japanese company took a majority stake in Ansaldo STS, with the funds complaining about the price paid in the public offer by Hitachi, as well as Ansaldo’s strategy and governance. Elliott is the second largest shareholder in Ansaldo with a potential interest of just over 31 percent. Hitachi holds a 50.77 percent stake in the group. “We are ready to buy Elliott’s shares in Ansaldo STS, but at a fair price. Our target remains to reach a 100 percent stake,” Hitachi Rail CEO and Ansaldo Chairman Alistair Dormer told Corriere’s L’Economia, in comments confirmed by a spokesman.
GE’s $11.1 Billion Deal With Wabtec Should Have Warren Buffett Feeling Very Sad (TheStreet)
Let the great General Electric (GE) unwinding begin. GE and Wabtec agreed on Monday to a $11.1 billion deal that will merge the transport operations of the two companies. GE shares popped 2.9% on the news. It’s hard not to view the deal as a win for GE — the company will unload a capital intensive business, get to participate in its upside (GE shareholders will hold about 50.1% of the combined group) and receive $2.9 billion in cash. GE shares traded up 2.5% in early trading. If GE CEO John Flannery has more clever deals like this up his sleeve this year, then Warren Buffett will be kicking himself for not buying at the March 2018 lows. Buffett said at Berkshire Hathaway‘s (BRK.A) (BRK.B) recent annual meeting he wasn’t looking at buying part, or all, of the struggling GE. Whoops.
