[Posted on May 15, 2008 at 6:39 PM]
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Filed under: Deal Stocks

Deal Stocks and the broader market ticked up on Thursday, as the looming dark cloud that is fuel prices looked a bit brighter with crude oil dropping 10 cents to close at $124.12 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The Dow Jones Industrial Average logged its second straight gain, climbing 94.28 points to close at 12,992.66. 

Continue reading "As the Bull charges, Cnet leads Deal Stocks" »

[Posted on May 15, 2008 at 5:00 PM]
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Filed under: Distressed | PE fund-raising | Private Equity

Add another $10 billion to the amount of cash flooding into distressed asset private equity funds as Oaktree Capital Management reportedly has reached the final close on its eighth fund with $10.6 billion, according to LBO Wire.

Continue reading "Oaktree closes $10.6B distressed fund" »

[Posted on May 15, 2008 at 4:47 PM]
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Filed under: Autos | Bankruptcy

Auto parts bankruptcies -- particularly those filed by small and midsized companies -- tend to follow the same formula. When a supplier begins struggling, it will sign both an access agreement and an accommodation deal with one or more auto-making customers. The accommodation allows the supplier to get financing from the customer under the proviso that it won't bolt to a new supplier for awhile, while the customer can feel secure about its supply chain not being broken because it literally gains access to the supplier's plants if things totally go south.

Continue reading "Excello may be sign of future for auto parts makers" »

[Posted on May 15, 2008 at 4:41 PM]
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Filed under: Deal Calendar | Hostile takeover | M&A | Media

With the expiration date hanging over Electronic Arts Inc.' $2 billion unsolicited bid for Take-Two Interactive Software Inc., an analyst note from Lazard Capital Markets' Colin Sebastian has video game bloggers speculating about the prospects of the offer.

Continue reading "Lazard analyst: Expect EA news soon" »

[Posted on May 15, 2008 at 3:35 PM]
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Filed under: Dealmakers | Hedge funds | M&A | Media | Microsoft/Yahoo | Proxy Fight

Earlier in the year, activist investor Carl Icahn announced his intentions to join the blogosphere with the Icahn Report. Unfortunately, his lawyers allegedly have held him back from launching the effort. We can't wait to put it in our RSS readers because we're hoping it will include more humorous anecdotes about fellow dealmakers like Apollo Management LLP's Leon Black and attorney Joe Jamail. However, to tide us over, we'll just ruminate over his letter to Yahoo! Inc. chairman Roy Bostock, after the jump. - Matthew Wurtzel

Continue reading "Will the Icahn blog read like his letters? " »

[Posted on May 15, 2008 at 2:45 PM]
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Filed under: Dealmakers | Dealwatch

Carl Icahn's latest activist campaign involves Yahoo! Inc. The investor said May 15 he would nominate a slate of 10 directors -- including himself -- to replace the company's board after it failed to agree to a deal with Microsoft Corp. He also unveiled having purchased 59 million Yahoo! shares and that he had applied for regulatory clearance to buy up to $2.5 billion in Yahoo! stock. It may be the latest, but it's not the only campaign on his plate.

Continue reading "Dealwatch: Carl Icahn" »

[Posted on May 15, 2008 at 2:15 PM]
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Filed under: Advisers | Today's deals

CBS Corp. on Thursday said it would pay $11.50 per share or nearly $1.8 billion for Cnet Networks Inc., news that caused the target's flagging share price to trade almost that high by midafternoon. Several advisers weighed in. Here are a few:

Continue reading "Just In: Advisers on CBS-Cnet" »

[Posted on May 15, 2008 at 2:09 PM]
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Filed under: Airlines | Editor's Choice | M&A | The Corporation

Talk Thursday that United Air Lines Inc. might forgo a merger with US Airways Group Inc. in favor of an alliance with Continental Airlines Inc. appear to have done little to sway opinion in the industry that the airline will soon be headed down the altar with US Air.

Continue reading "Despite codeshare talk, United still looking to merge" »

[Posted on May 15, 2008 at 1:59 PM]
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Filed under: Hedge funds | M&A | Media | Proxy Fight

Jana Partners LLC and Sandell Asset Management Corp. are the latest activist investors to win a campaign against a media company as target Cnet Networks Inc. agreed to a $1.8 billion offer from CBS Corp. With the latest victory, insurgent shareholders will certainly ratchet up their efforts against other media companies.

Continue reading "Jana's Cnet win the latest in a series of hedge fund campaigns " »

[Posted on May 15, 2008 at 1:34 PM]
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Filed under: Dealwatch | Hostile takeover | M&A | Microsoft/Yahoo | The Corporation

Yahoo! Inc. and Microsoft Corp. will indeed merge if Carl Icahn has anything to say about it. Gearing up for a proxy fight, he signaled his willingness May 15 to invest up to $2.5 billion in Yahoo! and announced a slate of board nominees that he said he hopes can help negotiate a merger between the companies.

Continue reading "Dealwatch: Yahoo!" »

[Posted on May 15, 2008 at 1:30 PM]
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Filed under: Corporate restructuring | Dealwatch | Media | Private Equity

Buzz that a settlement looked near for the litigation surrounding Clear Channel Communications Inc.'s  $25 billion leveraged buyout kicked off the week of May 12, and on May 13, the banks agreed to fund the deal at $36 per share, down from $39.20 agreed to by shareholders when they approved the buyout in September.

Continue reading "Dealwatch: Clear Channel" »

[Posted on May 15, 2008 at 12:54 PM]
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Filed under: M&A | Private Equity | Soapbox

Paul Andrews and Aaron Tam of UHY Advisors FLVS Inc.'s restructuring and turnaround practice group comment on private equity acquisitions and the mortgage crisis in The Daily Deal.

The subprime mortgage debacle was caused by many factors--frankly, too many to discuss in this article. One of the most significant root causes, however, was the abundance of inexpensive available cash early through mid-decade. In the subprime markets, low interest rates drove the demand to do more deals. The supply of good-credit borrowers buying houses in the ordinary course likely did not significantly change. In the mortgage markets this imbalance meant a combination of lowering underwriting standards and increasing the number of higher-risk subprime loans that were made.

Continue reading "Soapbox: The next subprime debacle?" »

[Posted on May 15, 2008 at 11:48 AM]
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Filed under: Editor's Choice | M&A | Media

With CBS Corp.'s $1.8 billion purchase of Cnet Networks Inc., we're again reminded that strategics are back at the helm of dealmaking. The renewed power has created a heady atmosphere for corporate dealmakers willing to make bold moves, as evidenced not only by the CBS offer, but also by the Microsoft Corp. bid for Yahoo! Inc., the Blockbuster offer for Circuit City Stores Inc., the Cablevision Corp. purchase of Newsday, and Hewlett-Packard Co.'s deal for Electronic Data Systems Corp.

Continue reading "CBS and Cnet: All about those video game-playing men?" »

[Posted on May 15, 2008 at 10:10 AM]
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Filed under: Dealmakers

Signaling that he wants to invest up to $2.5 billion, activist investor Carl Icahn on Thursday  launched a proxy contest at Yahoo! Inc., nominating 10 directors in the hopes of negotiating a successful merger with Microsoft Corp.

Continue reading "Icahn launches Yahoo! proxy fight" »

[Posted on May 15, 2008 at 8:41 AM]
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Filed under: Auction | Bankruptcy

Here are some of the latest bankruptcy stories our reporters have been covering Thursday morning on TheDeal.com. For more bankruptcy coverage, check out the bankruptcy channel on TheDeal.com or visit Bankruptcy Insider.

Kimball can tap tax refund
A Chicago bankruptcy judge authorized homebuilder Kimball Hill Inc. to use a $51.9 million federal tax refund as postpetition financing. - John Blakeley

Bag'n Baggage heads for auction
Bag'n Baggage Ltd. is using its second bankruptcy in five years to unload its assets either as a going concern or in piecemeal fashion. The struggling luggage seller will have a hearing on May 22 on bidding procedures that outline a sale of the company over the next few weeks. The debtor has asked the court to set a May 29 auction and a hearing to approve the sale a day later. - Ben Fidler

BoNY sweetens Palco plan
As bankrupt Pacific Lumber Co. readies for another round of contested confirmation hearings Thursday, Bank of New York Trust Co. NA is doing what it can to make its plan more appealing. BoNY, the indenture trustee for $713.8 million in notes issued by Palco affiliate Scotia Pacific Co., filed a notice stating that it has arranged a $10 million debtor-in-possession loan from Lehman Commercial Paper Inc., should its plan win confirmation. - John Blakeley