A cheeky website about deals, dealmakers and anything else I find interesting. Edited by Ben Harrington. If you have a tip, want to discuss a story or have a subscription enquiry please feel free to email Betaville at [email protected]. Betaville can also be reached at Whats App, Signal or Telegram. Betaville's Twitter handle is @bharringtonw11 and you can message me via Twitter with stories.
Yorkshire Water owner said to be working with Goldman Sachs to find a buyer for a multi-million pound stake - sources
It sounds like the owners of Yorkshire Water are gearing up for another attempt at selling their stakes in the water company.
City sources told little old Betaville that Corsair Capital - which owns 30pc of Kelda, Yorkshire Water's holding company - is working with the sharp suited types at Goldman Sachs to find a buyer for its shareholding...
Sachem Head and Dendur build takes in Entain, reveals the FT
Hacks at the venerable Financial Times have dug out a good scoop about Entain, the FTSE 100-listed owner of Ladbrokes.
According to the FT, activist hedge funds Sachem Head and Dendur have built sizeable positions in Entain, which has seen its share price underperform since Jette Nygaard-Andersen became chief executive of the business.
They join Eminence Capital, another Wall Street activist, on the Entain register...
UNCOOKED ALERT: Adevinta ASA said to ... - Part 3
So, Norwegian media group Adevinta ASA has finally confirmed the details of the EURO 14 billion takeover offer from a consortium led by American private equity house Blackstone. Below is a link to the details of the deal:
Canaccord Genuity's Quest gets shorty... - Part 2
The bears are really out in force today.
Now, Cannacord Guity's crack Quest unit, led by the well respected James Congdon, have released their latest short idea - Intertek, the FTSE 100-listed inspection and testing giant.
Scribblers at Quest argue: "We believe Intertek’s valuation does not reflect the fall in Cash Flow Returns on Assets"...
Bears maul CPI Property Group S.A...
Property companies are very much in vogue at the moment for the stockmarket's most ferocious bears.
Lask week activist short seller Viceroy went public with a mauling of Arbor Realty Trust while this morning Muddy Waters - led by uber bear Carson Block - has declared it is short the credit of CPI Property Group S.A, the European property company with operations in the Czech Republic, Germany and Poland...
UK Commercial REIT in £1 billion all share merger talks with Picton Property Income - Part 2
Well, that ended quickly.
UK Commercial REIT has called off merger talks with Picton Property Income, another London-listed property investment company, after being told by its largest shareholder that it doesn't want the former to pursue the deal. Below is a link to this morning's announcement:..
UNCOOKED ALERT: Ascential said to .....
UNCOOKED ALERT: Halfords Group said to ... - Part 2
I see Ben Marlow from The Sunday Telegraph has dug up a cracking new line on the Halfords takeover rumour little old Betaville first encoutered a few weeks ago.
According to Marlow's scoop, London-listed van rental unit Redde Northgate "has made a £1.4 billion merger approach for the high street bike and car repair chain"...
Bears circle Arbor Realty Trust, Inc again... - Part 3
The bear has come out of the woods!
You might recall little old Betaville noted last week that the more ferocious bears were circling Arbor Realty Trust, the US-listed real estate investment trust that specialises in providing bridge financing for commercial property purchases...
Young's pays £162 million the City Pub Group
Another deal has been announced this morning - Young & Co, also known as Young's, has agreed to buy London-listed rival the City Pub Group for £162 million with cash and shares.
This offer from Young's been pitched at a premium of 46pc. Below is a link to the details of the takeover deal of the City Pub Group, which is run by Clive Watson, father of Made in Chelsea (a UK-based reality TV programme) "star" Lucy Watson:..
Mars Inc buys Hotel Chocolat for £534 million
Wow - Mars Inc has agreed to buy Hotel Chocolat, the London-listed cocao grower and cholate maker, for a whopping 169.8pc premium!
The American chocolate maker is paying £534 million for Hotel Chocolat. Below is a link to the details of the takeover transaction:
https://www.londonstockexchange.com/news-article/HOTC/recommended-cash-acquisition/16211897..
Jollyes owner said to be working with bankers on potential multi-million pound sale - sources
One of Britain's largest pet food retailers could be about to change hands.
City sources said the the private equity owners of Jollyes are working with advisers from Houlihan Lokey on strategic options for Jollyes, which sells cat, dog and bird food across the United Kingdom from retail centres.
Jollyes, which was founded in 1935, is owned by buy-out house Kester Capital...
Deals, Deals, Deals ... in a bear market - Part 61
Glencore has just shown going "hostile" in takeover negotiations is one way to get what you want.
The FTSE 100-listed mining group has just announced a deal to buy 77pc of Teck Resources steelmaking coal division for $6.93 billion.
Canada's Tech Resources and Glencore, now led by Gary Nagle, came to the agreement after months of talks that saw the latter make an unsolicited offer in May for the whole of the former. Below is a link to this morning's announcement:..
UNCOOKED ALERT: Foxtons said to ... - Part 6
Another large shareholder in Foxtons has called on the London-listed estate agent and broker to carry out a "strategic review".
Milkwood Capital, which owns just under 4pc of Foxtons, is the latest fund to urge the company's board to start a sale process...
Weekend review: BP and, er, that's it... - Part 3
The BP takeover target theory was aired again this weekend.
This, time, though it was Alex Brummer - veteran city journalist at the Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday - that had a stab at the story.
In a back page lead in the Mail on Sunday with the headline "will Shell and BP join forces in oil mega merger?"Brummer writes:..
UNCOOKED ALERT: Digital 9 Infrastructure PLC said ..
Bears circle Arbor Realty Trust, Inc again... - Part 2
Little old Betaville has done some digging around and it sounds like the bearishness around Arbor Realty Trust might be coming from some of the more ferocious bears.
However, the talk in the market is that perhaps these bears don't want to come out of the woods quite yet, so it might be a few weeks before they start mauling the US-listed real estate lender.
Watching.....
UNCOOKED ALERT: Arcelor Mittal said to ... - Part ..
Bears circle Arbor Realty Trust, Inc again...
Short sellers have been targeting Arbor Realty Trust for a while.
But now little old Betaville hears that there are some new bears circling the US-listed real estate investment trust that specialises in providing bridge financing for commercial property purchases.
And word is some of the bearish types eyeing Arbor may be of the more activist ilk.
Quite, though, what the angle is here for these bears remains to be seen.....
[Disclaimer - the information on Betaville does not consitute any form of investment recommendation and is not intended to be relied upon by readers in making, or refraining from, any investment decisions].