Visit our Filed page for categories. To browse by specific topic, see our Inside page. For a list of companies covered on this site, visit our Companies page.
Sam Waksal, the former chief executive of ImClone Systems Inc., whose insider trading scam sent him and Martha Stewart to prison, Monday announced an acquisition meant to catapult him back into the biotech game.
Waksal said that his drug company Kadmon Pharmaceuticals has bought the privately held Three Rivers Pharmaceuticals and that its treatments for hepatitis C, infections and cancer will be the backbone of his new enterprise. Get the full story »
Caterpillar Inc. said Friday it is buying a German engine maker, MWM Holding GmbH, from private-equity firm 3i for 580 million euros, or about $810 million, in cash. Get the full story »
The Canadian province that is home to Potash Corp. said on Thursday it was opposed to a $39 billion bid by BHP Billiton to buy the world’s largest fertilizer supplier.
Saskatchewan will urge the federal government to block the Anglo-Australian miner’s hostile bid for Potash Corp, which is based in the province. Get the full story »
Buoyed by a global rebound in travel, United and Continental airlines flew into the black during their last quarter as independent carriers.
United Continental Holdings Inc., the parent company created by the airlines’ Oct. 1 merger, reported that United’s net income soared to $473 million or $2.12 per share, excluding fuel and merger-related charges during the third quarter. That’s a $533 million improvement from 2009 results. Get the full story »
Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper weighed in on miner BHP Billiton’s $39 billion bid to take over Saskatchewan-based Potash Corp. on Wednesday, calling it a proposal by an Australian-based company to take over an American-controlled company.
The Conservative government has until Nov. 3 to decide whether to approve the bid for Potash, the world’s biggest fertilizer producer. Ottawa is required to determine whether the bid would be a net benefit for Canada. Get the full story »
With its options running out and time running out, Potash Corp may soon have little choice but to negotiate with BHP Billiton over the $39 billion bid that the world’s largest fertilizer supplier has flatly rejected.
Since the Anglo-Australian miner announced its hostile bid in August, Saskatchewan-based Potash Corp has repeatedly assured investors that a rival offer would emerge. None has, and nearly all of the prospective suitors mentioned two months ago are now considered out of the running. Get the full story »
News that China’s Sinochem will not launch a counterbid for Potash Corp., removes one of the biggest potential obstacles to BHP Billiton’s $39 billion offer for the Canadian fertilizer giant.
The fate of Potash is far from certain, however, as other white knights may emerge, and BHP faces regulatory hurdles on the one hand and demands from Potash for a higher bid on the other. Get the full story »
AOL Inc. and several private equity firms are exploring the possibility of buying Yahoo Inc., according to people familiar with the matter.
Shares of Yahoo jumped more than 9 percent on Thursday on the news, fueled by the prospect that the Internet company could be the target of a buyout by private equity firms, possibly in conjunction with another media company like AOL or News Corp. Get the full story »
Potash Corp. has pledged to move key staff from Chicago to Saskatchewan province as it tries to win political favour by matching BHP Billiton’s promise to beef up its Canadian headquarters if it wins control of the fertilizer maker.
Saskatoon-based Potash outlined a series of commitments to the province in a bid to sway political opinion against BHP which has also promised to move key jobs back to Canada if its $39 billion takeover bid is successful. Get the full story »
Aon Corp., a Chicago-based insurance brokerage and consulting firm, said it will cut 1,500 to 1,800 jobs globally over the next three years as part of its merger with Lincolnshire-based personnel consulting company Hewitt Associates.
It also said the headquarters decision for Aon Hewitt — the consulting arm — is “being worked out.” Aon is currently headquartered in one of the tallest buildings in Chicago.
The restructuring of the combined workforce and of the merged firm’s real estate holdings will cost $325 million, of which $180 million will be due to employee severance costs. Get the full story »
Burger King Holdings Inc .said it did not get any superior buyout offers during the “go-shop” period following its agreement to sell itself to investment firm 3G Capital for $3.26 billion.
The world’s second-largest hamburger chain had time until Oct. 12 to solicit a richer offer from other buyers. Get the full story »
OfficeMax Inc. shares rose 9.3 percent to $15.69 in heavy trading Tuesday after a J.P. Morgan analyst said that the office supply company was ripe for a leveraged buyout.
The Naperville-based retailer is undervalued compared to its larger rivals Staples Inc. and Office Depot Inc., analyst Christopher Horvers said in the report. Even though OfficeMax is five years into a turnaround effort, there is still plenty of room left to restructure the business, he said. The report valued OfficeMax at $28 a share, citing the company’s cash pile along with a slew of expiring leases that would allow OfficeMax to move to higher traffic locations and open smaller, more productive stores. Get the full story »
Children’s clothing retailer Gymboree Corp. is being purchased by affiliates of asset management firm Bain Capital for $1.8 billion.
Gymboree said Monday that the deal is for $65.40 per share, a 24 percent premium to Gymboree’s Friday closing stock price of $52.95. The retailer, based in San Francisco, currently has about 27.3 million shares outstanding. Get the full story »
Rival bidders may be looking to derail BHP Billiton’s $39 billion bid for Canada’s Potash Corp., with China’s Sinochem and a Canadian pension fund working on plans, according to newspaper reports. Get the full story »
