Six months are nearly up: Time for a Kraft-y Unilever takeover July 14, 2017 The Unilever takeover bid by American food giant Kraft may be back on again, if analysts at Susquehanna Financial Group are to be believed. In a research note, they observe that while there’s no concrete evidence to suggest Kraft will make another offer, the circumstances make it likely that it will. Kraft has not openly [...]
FTSE 100 history: how the index has changed over 33 years July 3, 2017 The FTSE 100 index has just seen one of its quarterly changes with security firm G4S and real estate investment trust Segro promoted to the top 100. Although perhaps small in themselves, these regular events have changed the face of the UK’s leading index since it was formed in 1984. For the many investors whose [...]
Which UK stock market sectors have performed best over two decades? May 19, 2017 When the stock market rises and falls the sectors within it can move very differently, especially in the short-term. Perhaps the best example was the dotcom boom and bust, when technology shares soared in 1999 and then spectacularly crashed in the three years that followed. A balanced and carefully managed portfolio can ease the impact [...]
Unilever gets backing from City investors after FTSE 100 company unveils shake-up including sale of spreads business April 6, 2017 City investors gave their backing to Unilever today after the FTSE 100 company unveiled a shake-up prompted by Kraft Heinz’s failed takeover bid. The firm announced it would be kicking off a €5bn (£4.3bn) share buyback, raise its dividend by 12 per cent, review its dual-listing structure and sell its £6bn-valued spreads business. Asset managers [...]
Q&A: Why are brands like Marks and Spencer pulling their advertising from Google? March 20, 2017 A newspaper investigation uncovered examples of several high profile brands being advertised against extremist content such as videos of a preacher banned from Britain and from white extremist David Duke insulting Jewish people. The BBC, Channel 4, The Guardian as well as the Financial Conduct Authority, Transport for London and the Royal Navy, advertising for [...]
One in four UK deals broke down last year, and more M&A collapses are expected in 2017 March 20, 2017 One in four deals involving UK listed firms broke down in failure last year, new analysis today shows. And, with further economic and political uncertainty on the way, more disrupted deals are thought to be on the cards this year. Read more: Jupiter boss plays down M&A rumours: "We’re not looking to be acquired" Accountancy firm [...]
Unilever and the confused priorities of the Davos elite March 20, 2017 If Angela Merkel epitomises the overrated in terms of international statesmanship, her equal in corporate terms must be Paul Polman of Unilever. As is true with the German Chancellor, it is unfathomable to me that the leader of a major corporation with a record this hapless should be lionised. For the larger point is that both [...]
Unilever is exploring a £6bn sale of spreads brands such as Flora and Stork after Kraft Heinz deal collapse March 19, 2017 Unilever is exploring the sale of some of its most iconic brands after coming under shareholder pressure over a $143bn takeover bid from Kraft Heinz. Paul Polman, the FTSE 100 firm’s chief executive, is drawing up cost-cutting and restructuring plans, which could lead to the sale of its margarine and spreads business. The division, comprising [...]
Will fortune favour brave Bob Diamond’s Panmure Gordon takeover, Unilever’s flawed logic and the IoD’s Simon Walker heads back to his PR roots March 17, 2017 He's back – and brave. Conventional wisdom has it that smaller City brokers are destined either to merge or die, so a Bob Diamond-backed move for Panmure Gordon represents a bold bet that he and his partners can forge a fresh path for one of the broking world’s most venerable names. Boldness isn’t a fitting adjective [...]
Unilever shows that the Prime Minister must show her cards on takeovers by foreign companies March 15, 2017 Prime Minister Theresa May has talked tough on foreign takeovers and raised the prospect of a beefed-up national interest policy as fears rise about opportunistic takeovers on the back of the weaker pound. However, it is unclear how far the government would actually intervene in corporate dealmaking when it comes to the crunch. Ministers were [...]