By Michael Oneal | Sara
Lee Corp. announced Tuesday that it will sell its remaining
insecticides business to S.C. Johnson & Son Inc. in a deal valued at
around $188 million. The sale is the latest step in Sara Lee’s ongoing
plan to unload its international beauty and home care division.
Filed under: M&A
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Sara Lee to sell insecticides to S.C. Johnson
Icahn says Lions Gate may be headed for bankruptcy
Reuters | Lions Gate Entertainment Corp may be flirting with bankruptcy, according to Carl Icahn, the billionaire investor attempting a hostile takeover of the movie studio.
Wendy’s/Arby’s shares up on takeover talk
Associated Press | Wendy’s/Arby’s Group Inc. Chairman Nelson Peltz says he has been approached by an unnamed group interested in possibly acquiring the restaurant company and is looking into it. Wendy’s/Arby’s shares climbed 11 percent to $4.82 in premarket trading.
United hires Bain in Continental merger
From Bloomberg | United CEO Officer Glenn Tilton said the airline has hired consulting firm Bain & Co. to help plan its integration with Continental Airlines Inc.
Get the full story: businessweek.com.
Old Republic to buy PMA Capital for $228M
Dow Jones Newswires | Insurer Old Republic International Corp.
has agreed to buy PMA Capital Corp. for $228 million in stock as the
struggling insurer looks to build its general-insurance business.
Bunge Ltd. rethinks bid for Corn Products Intl.
From the San Francisco Chronicle | BMO Capital Markets said that Bunge Ltd., the world’s second-largest sugar trader, is less likely to revive a bid for Corn Products International Inc. after announcing a plan to buy back as much as $700 million of stock.
Get the full story: sfgate.com.
Allscripts buys rival Eclipsys in $1.3B deal
Reuters | Chicago-based healthcare software company Allscripts
said it was to buy rival Eclipsys in a $1.3 billion all-share deal, to
create a leader in electronic healthcare records.
The enlarged group’s client base will include over 180,000 doctors,
1,500 hospitals and nearly 10,000 nursing homes, and be better
positioned to access $30 billion in federal funds for the adoption of
electronic healthcare records, the companies said.
A doctor uses eRx NOW Web-based software from Allscripts to write prescriptions. (Allscripts photo) >>
“We are at the beginning of what we believe will be the fastest
transformation of any industry in U.S. history,” said Allscripts chief
executive Glen Tullman, who will head the merged company. Eclipsys
chief executive Phil Pead will become chairman of the combined group.
Sale of West Suburban, Westlake Hospitals gets OK
From Crain’s Chicago Business | The Tennessee-based, for-profit Vanguard Health Systems has received approval from the Illinois Health and Facilities Review Board to buy West Suburban and Westlake Hospitals from Resurrection Health Care. The $40 million deal is expected to close soon.
Read the full story: chicagobusiness.com
Des Plaines Office Equipment snaps up Kee
By Julie Wernau | Des
Plaines Office Equipment has acquired Kee Business Systems in the
55-year-old company’s fourth acquisition in four years. Both companies
are headquartered in Elk Grove.
Terms of the deal were not disclosed but Chip Miceli, president of DPOE,
said Kee’s annual sales are around $1 million. Kee’s office at 1400
Landmeirer Rd. will close and seven employees, including t President
Jeff Kee, will move to DPOE’s corporate headquarters at 1020 Bonaventure
Ave.
Booz & Co. eyeing A.T. Kearney
Dow Jones Newswires-Wall Street Journal | Booz & Co. is
exploring a possible merger with rival management consultancy A.T.
Kearney Inc., according to people familiar with the situation, in a
deal that would give the two midsized companies greater scale but still
leave them smaller than the market leaders in a highly competitive
industry.
The merged concern would form the world’s 14th-biggest management
consultancy and seventh-biggest management strategy consultancy,
according to Tom Rodenhauser, an industry analyst and editor of
newsletter Consultants News.
Integrys closes sale of Texas unit
Tribune staff report | Integrys Energy Group Inc. said its nonregulated subsidiary, Integrys Energy Services, Inc., has sold all of its Texas retail electric marketing business as part of Integrys Energy Group’s strategy to reduce the size and scope of its nonregulated marketing and energy services operations. Financial terms of the transaction involving an unnamed buyer were not disclosed.
Javelin files suit to force Hospira deal
Tribune staff report | Javelin Pharmaceuticals Inc. said it has filed a lawsuit against Hospira Inc. in the Delaware Court of Chancery to compel Hospira to complete a merger agreement signed in April among Javelin, Hospira and its Discus subsidiary.
Seattle-based company acquires Chitown Deals
By Wailin Wong | A Seattle-based company announced Wednesday that it has acquired Chicago’s Chitown Deals, a sign that the fast-growing number of daily deal Web sites has primed the industry for consolidation.
Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. Tippr, the Seattle company, has rolled out its group-buying model to 10 U.S. cities, including Chicago, New York and Los Angeles. Tippr kept Chitown Deals’ original branding and community on the local company’s website.
Chicago-based Groupon, the leader in the daily deal space, acquired a European rival earlier this month.
General Growth sticks with Brookfield bid
Reuters | General Growth Properties Inc. looks set to proceed with a plan to emerge from bankruptcy, bankrolled by a group led by Brookfield Asset Management, as a deadline for others to submit bids passed on Wednesday, a source familiar with the matter said.
General Growth had set a June 2 deadline for offers. But it can still entertain better bids to either buy the Chicago-based company or to fund it as a stand-alone entity before a court date in mid-July to submit a plan to exit bankruptcy.
U.K. takeover panel reviews disclosure rules
From Bloomberg | The U.K. merger regulator may change takeover rules on shareholder votes, fees and disclosures after comments by former Business Secretary Peter Mandelson about Northfield-based Kraft Foods Inc.’s takeover of Cadbury Plc prompted a review.
Get the full story: businessweek.com.
