Archive for the ‘Acquisitions’ Category

So, is this going to be effective, or is this just last minute noise making?

Christopher Bancroft, part of the family that controls Dow Jones, is trying to block a takeover by Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp., a source familiar with the situation said on Monday, confirming a story reported in the Wall Street Journal.

Bancroft has recently approached hedge funds and private equity firms, hoping to buy enough voting shares of Dow Jones to give him the power to thwart a sale, the Wall Street Journal reported on its Web site, citing people familiar with the matter.

Bancroft is trying to buy more “supervoting” shares from other Bancroft heirs who may be ready to sell their stakes but share his distaste for handing the family legacy to Murdoch, the Journal said.

He, his siblings, his neice, and their children control about 1/3 of the Bancroft family shares in Dow Jones. The Bancroft family controls 64% of the company’s voting power. Does he have the resources to pull this off? If so, Murdoch isn’t going to be happy, that’s for sure.

It seems Energizer is going to purchase Playtex.

Battery and razor maker Energizer Holdings Inc. (NYSE:ENR – PYX – news) in an all-cash deal worth about $1.16 billion to grow Energizer’s personal care product range.

St Louis-based Energizer will pay $18.30 a share — and assume the debt — for Playtex, which makes leading sun-screen products like Banana Boat and Hawaiian Tropic. Playtex also markets a range of other feminine care and infant care products.

The deal offers shareholders of Playtex a premium of 17.9 percent to Playtex’s closing price of $15.52 on Thursday on the New York Stock Exchange. The deal value of $1.16 billion is based on 63.46 million shares outstanding as of April 30, according to a recent regulatory filing.

For some reason batteries and female products seem like a really good fit.

“The Business”, a London magazine, is saying that Rupert Murdoch has succeeded in his bid for Dow Jones.

Rupert Murdoch has succeeded with his $5 billion bid for Dow Jones, owners of the Wall Street Journal, according to sources acting for the Dow Jones board. Negotiations on price and matters of principle have been completed, though some details remain to be resolved. None is regarded by either side as a deal-breaker.

The Dow board is confident that the terms of the deal will be accepted by the Bancroft family, which controls a majority of voting shares in Dow Jones, over the next few working days. A formal announcement is expected next week.

That news would be amazing, if Dow Jones, the Bancroft family, and News Corp. weren’t all denying the news. In fact, a News Corp. spokesman said that the company was unaware of the truth or otherwise of the report in the British magazine.

It makes you wonder though. Doesn’t it?