Mergers, Acquisitions , Splits & Spinoffs.......

[The Virginian]

Kinder Morgan (KMI -0.8%) agrees to buy 15 refined products terminals in the U.S. from BP (BP -1.3%) in a deal valued at ~$350M.

The two companies say they will form a joint venture terminal business to own 14 of the acquired assets, which KMI will operate and market on the JVs behalf; KMI will be the sole owner of one terminal.

The terminals, with ~9.5M barrels of storage, are pipeline-connected to refining and processing centers across the U.S.


seekingalpha.com/news/2839946-kinder-morgan-buys-15-u-s-terminals-from-bp-in-350m-deal

[The Virginian]

Duke Energy to acquire Piedmont Natural Gas for $4.9 billion in cash

www.cnbc.com/2015/10/26/duke-energy-to-acquire-piedmont-natural-gas-for-49-billion-in-cash.html

[m2m]

Good morning!

$100.00 GE for $107.53 SYF

If you have GE shares, would you accept the offer of Synchrony Financial (SYF) to exchange your GE shares with SYF? 

Thanks!

[The Virginian]

Oct 27, 2015 10:01:18 GMT -5 m2m said:

Good morning!

$100.00 GE for $107.53 SYF

If you have GE shares, would you accept the offer of Synchrony Financial (SYF) to exchange your GE shares with SYF? 

Thanks!

M2M, I have seen arguments on both sides but personally I am not because SYF does not pay a dividend. Some are speculating they may start but they will still have the governments thumb on them and they will dictate whether they are allowed to pay a dividend and how much. I'm sticking with GE because of their dividend and their potential to benefit from this and other pending transactions.

[ModE98]

Think I would stick with GE, if it were me holding shares.  But, of course, everybody has to make their own decision.

[Deleted]

Walgreens Boots Alliance {WBA} is in advanced talks to buy RiteAid {RAD}

[m2m]

Thanks Virginian and Mod,

Virginian - I totally agree! I am keeping GE for "the dividend and the  potential to benefit from this and other pending transactions".

[The Virginian]

IBM confirms Weather Co. deal, touts cloud/analytics synergies; shares rise

seekingalpha.com/news/2865916-ibm-confirms-weather-co-deal-touts-cloud-analytics-synergies-shares-rise

[The Virginian]

Duke Energy Makes a $4.9 Billion Bet on Natural Gas
The acquisition of Piedmont Natural Gas is a big move into natural gas, but it comes at a steep price.

When an electric utility like Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) starts to see its business come under fire by falling demand and competing energy sources, it's natural to want to diversify and expand to grow your competitive moat. Yesterday, Duke Energy decided that expansion should take place in natural gas distribution with the $4.9 billion acquisition of Piedmont Natural Gas (NYSE:PNY) and its 1 million natural gas customers.

This will ease some of the pressure on Duke Energy's electricity business and provide some earnings stability. It'll also expand the reach of the country's largest utility.

www.fool.com/investing/general/2015/10/27/duke-energy-makes-a-49-billion-bet-on-natural-gas.aspx

[The Virginian]

WSJ: Pfizer, Allergan considering mega-tie-up
( Ever notice how these transactions always seem to come in waves ?)

Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) and Allergan (NYSE:AGN) are considering a combination, Dow Jones is reporting.

A tie-up between the two would create an entity with more than $300B in market cap, and would be the biggest announced takeover this year.

Pfizer recently approached Allergan about a deal, sources tell The Wall Street Journal.

Price could be an obstacle; on Tuesday Pfizer chief Ian Read says he's seen rival stock prices fall, but “I’m not sure there has been a readjustment in what the investors and leaders of those companies believe those companies are worth in a transactional situation.”

Both companies' stocks are up more than 11.5% YTD.

seekingalpha.com/news/2869866-wsj-pfizer-allergan-considering-mega-tie-up

[The Virginian]

Johnson & Johnson buys clinical stage developer of HBV antivirals

Nov 4 2015, 12:48 ET | About: Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) | By: Douglas W. House, SA News Editor

Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) acquires privately held Novira Therapeutics, a clinical stage biopharmaceutical firm developing therapies to cure chronic hepatitis B infection within one year of treatment, for an undisclosed sum. The transaction should close this quarter.

Novira's lead product candidate is NVR 3-778, a orally available, small molecule, direct-acting antiviral that inhibits the HBV core or capsid protein. HBV core is an attractive drug target since it is plays a key role in viral replication and survival. NVR 3-778 disrupts the HBV life cycle by inducing the assembly of defective capsids. According to the company, its inhibitors, when used in combination with current standard-of-care drugs (nucleosides and interferon), should deliver greater and faster suppression of viral DNA and new virus production.

seekingalpha.com/news/2894476-johnson-and-johnson-buys-clinical-stage-developer-of-hbv-antivirals

[The Virginian]

Pfizer-Allergan deal could see company split

Nov 6 2015, 03:09 ET | About: Pfizer Inc. (PFE) | By: Yoel Minkoff, SA News Editor [Contact this editor with comments or a news tip]

In addition to providing tax benefits, a Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) merger with Allergan (NYSE:AGN) could bolster the U.S. drugmaker's growth prospects should it decide to sell or spin off its off-patent portfolio.

Many Wall Street analysts believe Pfizer will decide to split late next year, as the company already treats its "established products" division and its "innovative" patent-protected medicines business as if they were separate units.

Such a split would boost the company's profitability, because in-patents drugs command much higher prices that rise every year vs. off-patent medicines that become commoditized and their prices decline.


seekingalpha.com/news/2906636-pfizer-allergan-deal-could-see-company-split

[ModE98]

Weyerhaeuser has agreed to buy Plum Creek Timber in a deal that combines the two largest owners of timberland in the U.S. The all-stock transaction will result in a $23B timber REIT carrying more than 13M acres of land.

[Value Buy]

Kroger announced they were buying Roundy's today.
Roundy's is based in Wisconsin and is a wholesale grocery company with retail stores clustered in Wisconsin and northeast Illinois.
Roundy's has struggled this year, but stock jumped on the news over 60% today.
Don't get too excited. It was less than a $2 increase in stock price.

I had sort of thought Kroger was looking at Centrella Grocers of Illinois, a grocery co-op, but evidently they see this as a cheaper way of getting in the Chicago market.
Kroger does have a small presence in Illinois and Indiana with a warehouse discount retail grocery format.

[ModE98]

Marriott International has agreed to acquire Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide (NYSE:HOT) in a deal valued at about $12.2B, creating the world's largest hotel company. Under terms of the deal, Starwood shareholders will receive 0.92 shares of Marriott (NASDAQ:MAR) Class A stock and $2 in cash for each share of Starwood common stock.

[The Virginian]

Conagra to Split into two companies !

ConAgra Brands will be a diverse portfolio of leading brands. 2015 revenue: $9B.

Lamb Weston will be a leading foodservice supplier of frozen potatoes. 2015 revenue: $2.9B. 2015 operating profit: $570M.

CAG plans tax-free distribution of Lamb Weston publicly-traded stock.

Expected completion: fall 2016.

Mgmt. color: "The decision to separate into two pure-play companies reflects our ongoing commitment to implementing bold changes in order to deliver sustainable growth and enhanced shareholder value. We carefully considered a variety of strategic alternatives, and believe that the separation of our Lamb Weston specialty potato business from our consumer brands business is the best way to drive shareholder value. The separation will enable each company to sharpen its strategic focus and provide flexibility to capitalize on the unique growth opportunities in its respective market.

"Shareholders will gain direct exposure to more focused consumer and commercial foods businesses, each with distinct customer bases and investment profiles. We are confident that this separation will best position each company to compete and win while creating compelling long-term value for shareholders and delivering benefits to employees, customers and other key stakeholders."

seekingalpha.com/news/2937016-conagra-foods-to-split-into-two-companies

[The Virginian]

Hormel Foods announces 2-for-1 stock split

www.cnbc.com/2015/11/25/hormel-foods-announces-two-for-one-stock-split.html

[The Virginian]

KMI is currently yielding 8.66% - A opportune time to buy shares if you have a long time frame.



Kinder Morgan, Brookfield Infrastructure to buy pipeline interest for $242M

seekingalpha.com/news/2956006-kinder-morgan-brookfield-infrastructure-to-buy-pipeline-interest-for-242m

[The Virginian]

Johnson & Johnson wraps deal for biopharma Novira
Dec 4 2015, 16:54 ET | About: Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) | By: Jason Aycock, SA News Editor

seekingalpha.com/news/2967126-johnson-and-johnson-wraps-deal-for-biopharma-novira

[The Virginian]

FTC approves Duke Energy's proposed deal for Piedmont Natural Gas

seekingalpha.com/news/2999906-ftc-approves-duke-energys-proposed-deal-for-piedmont-natural-gas

[The Virginian]

General Mills (GIS) Acquires a Brazilian Yogurt Company -
 Trying to expand presence in Brazil !

seekingalpha.com/news/3001526-general-mills-acquires-brazilian-yogurt-brands

[The Virginian]

General Motors invests $500m in Lyft, forms partnership


www.breitbart.com/big-government/2016/01/04/general-motors-forms-partnership-with-lyft-invests-500-million/


www.cnbc.com/2016/01/04/general-motors-to-invest-500m-in-ride-sharing-firm-lyft.html

[The Virginian]

Intel buys German drone maker for its software/algorithms

"""The purchase comes five months after Intel announced a $60M+ investment in Chinese drone maker Yuneec. The company has also invested in drone OEMs Airwave and PrecisionHawk, as it squares off against Qualcomm, Nvidia, and early market leader Ambarella in the drone processor market"""

seekingalpha.com/news/3011956-intel-buys-german-drone-maker-for-its-software-algorithms

[The Virginian]

GE makes another Acquisition - It seems to be on a buying Spree - Now I know what they are doing with the shareholders 90 Billion !

"After completing the purchase of Alstom's energy portfolio, many were wondering what General Electric's (NYSE:GE) next acquisition would be. We now have our answer. On December 28 GE announced plans to purchase Metem, a privately-held company that provides precision cooling hole manufacturing technologies for turbine engines."



seekingalpha.com/article/3789996-what-to-make-of-general-electrics-latest-acquisition

[Value Buy]

GE dumps the appliance division on China.

www.msn.com/en-us/money/companies/ge-sells-appliance-business-to-chinas-qingdao-haier-for-dollar54-bln/ar-BBoea5e

[The Virginian]

Johnson Controls in advanced talks to acquire Tyco


www.cnbc.com/2016/01/24/johnson-controls-eyes-deal-with-tyco.html

[The Virginian]

Abbott Labs buys Alere for $5.8B; shares up 46% premarket


seekingalpha.com/news/3069086-abbott-labs-buys-alere-5_8b-shares-46-percent-premarket

[The Virginian]

Verizon might buy Yahoo !

www.cnbc.com/2016/02/06/verizon-ceo-confirms-interest-in-buying-yahoo.html

[Deleted]

LOL.

Wonder if it would be called VERHOO or YARIZON.

[The Virginian]

I am a stockholder in Verizon but I really don't fully understand their strategy for acquiring AOL & potentially Yahoo. On the other hand I also own AT&T and I do fully understand their strategy for acquiring Direct TV & Expanding into Mexico.

I will stick with both for now but my gut tells me AT&T has the better long term strategy.