The WSJ is reporting that Dow Chemical (DOW) and DuPont (DD) are in advanced merger talks to create a chemical behemoth with leading positions across the chemical spectrum including ag, plastics and a host of other markets. Both companies have been shedding non-core and non-performing assets over the past few years, including some via spinoffs and exchange offers.… Read More »
The Federal Reserve formally approved Synchrony Financial’s (SYF) application to become a publicly traded savings & loan holding company. The approval is a key regulatory milestone for the company and its completion will pave the way for GE (GE) to finish separating the business via exchange offer. As its recent earnings report highlighted, GE has shifted its focus… Read More »
A few short hits for the end of the week… The WSJ busted out an activist report card analyzing the results of ‘what happens to large U.S. companies after an activist arrives’. Naturally, the outcome is ‘mixed’. That said, it’s certainly an interesting data set to parse through and one is able to sort by activist or by… Read More »
Titans of the hedge fund industry, including John Paulson, Carl Icahn, Nelson Peltz (and many more), gathered at the Pierre Hotel this past Wednesday for CNBC’s Delivering Alpha conference. There was a lot of Fed talk (Stanley Druckenmiller is not a fan), musings on the economy and of course, the proverbial ‘talking up the book’. It took a… Read More »