Humans are nothing if not pattern recognition machines. Even in random data, we see patterns. So Bloomberg’s report that Jorge Paulo Lemann’s 3G is expected by some to be ready to do another large deal is no surprise. Never mind that the supposition is based on a mere two data points: two years separated 3G’s 2013 acquisition of… Read More »
Poor Irene Rosenfeld. The former CEO of Kraft Foods was badgered by Nelson Peltz’s Trian Group into breaking up her empire in 2012 into the slow growing, North American grocery business, Kraft Foods Group, and the international snack food company Mondelez International (MDLZ). She remained at the top of Mondelez and also (rightfully) took a lot of heat for the… Read More »
Graham Holdings Company(GHC) was, not long ago, The Washington Post Company. But after the sale of The Washington Post to Jeff Bezos in 2013, the name needed to change. The Washington Post was neither the first nor the last asset bought or sold as Donald Graham radically transforms the company he inherited from his mother Katherine. Previously, Newsweek… Read More »
Less than 3 years after being spun off from then Kraft Foods (now the ill-named Mondelez [MDLZ]), Kraft Foods Group (KRFT) has agreed to a merger with Heinz. Heinz was taken private in 2013 by Brazilian private equity firm 3G capital, with backing from Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway(BRKA,BRKB). Berkshire Hathaway and 3G will be injecting an additional $10 billion… Read More »
Late last month, Procter & Gamble(PG) announced that it would be divesting its Duracell business. At the time, its preferred outcome was to spin off the division to shareholders. The second step is the exit of the Duracell business. Although no decision has been made on the form of the exit, P&G’s current preference is a split-off of… Read More »
Newcastle Investment Corp(NCT), which in May spun off a residential REIT, the creatively named New Residential Investment Corp(NRZ), has announced plans to spin off its media business to shareholders. Newcastle is a bit of a strange beast. It is structured as a REIT and controlled by Fortress Investment Group (FIG). The transaction itself is strange as well. Newcastle… Read More »
Just a day after Tribune (TRBAA) announced that it would be separating its publishing assets into a new company, speculation has already started about who will be the next media company to follow the breakup trend. With News Corp’s (NWSA) spinoff completed and Time Warner’s (TWX) on track, the WSJ tossed out Gannett’s (GCI) name as a possible… Read More »