North American rail traffic down 3.4% for the week ending February 25
The Association of American Railroads, AAR reported U.S. rail traffic for the week ending February 25, as well as volumes for February 2023.
U.S. railroads originated 905,744 carloads in February 2023, down 1.6% or 15,101 carloads, from February 2022.
U.S. railroads also originated 943,979 containers and trailers in February 2023, down 8.4%, or 86,351 units, from the same month last year.
Combined U.S. carload and intermodal originations in February 2023 were 1,849,723, down 5.2%, or 101,452 carloads and intermodal units from February 2022.
“Coal, chemicals, and grain together account for more than half of all non-intermodal U.S. rail volume.
When all three are down, like they were in February, it’s very hard for total carloads not to be down too,” said AAR Senior Vice President John T. Gray.
“On the positive side, several commodities including crushed stone and sand, petroleum products, steel products, grain mill and food products showed very strong performances.”
Total U.S. weekly rail traffic was 459,233 carloads and intermodal units, down 5.9% compared with the same week last year.
Total carloads for the week ending February 25 were 226,435 carloads, up 0.1% compared with the same week in 2022, while U.S. weekly intermodal volume was 232,798 containers and trailers, down 11.1% compared to 2022.
North American rail volume for the week ending February 25 on 12 reporting U.S., Canadian and Mexican railroads totaled 327,221 carloads, up 2.9% compared with the same week last year, and 308,029 intermodal units, down 9.3% compared with last year.
Total combined weekly rail traffic in North America was 635,250 carloads and intermodal units, down 3.4%.
Publicly traded companies in the space include CSX (CSX), Canadian National (CNI), Canadian Pacific (CP), Kansas City Southern (KSU), Norfolk Southern (NSC), Union Pacific (UNP), Greenbrier (GBX), Trinity Industries (TRN), FreightCar America (RAIL) and Wabtec (WAB).
This article does not constitute investment advice. Each reader is encouraged to consult with his or her individual financial professional and any action a reader takes as a result of information presented here is his or her own responsibility.
Netflix provides update on sharing guidelines as 100M households share accounts
In an “update on sharing,” Netflix (NFLX) said that,
“Today, over 100 million households are sharing accounts – impacting our ability to invest in great new TV and films.
So over the last year, we’ve been exploring different approaches to address this issue in Latin America, and we’re now ready to roll them out more broadly in the coming months, starting today in Canada, New Zealand, Portugal and Spain.
Our focus has been on giving members greater control over who can access their account.
Set primary location: We’ll help members set this up, ensuring that anyone who lives in their household can use their Netflix account.
Manage account access and devices: Members can now easily manage who has access to their account from our new Manage Access and Devices page.
Transfer profile: People using an account can now easily transfer a profile to a new account, which they pay for – keeping their personalized recommendations, viewing history, My List, saved games and more.
Netflix Spain raises prices
Watch while you travel: Members can still easily watch Netflix on their personal devices or log into a new TV, like at a hotel or holiday rental.
Netflix Canada raises prices
Buy an extra member: Members on our Standard or Premium plan in many countries (including Canada, New Zealand, Portugal and Spain) can add an extra member sub account for up to two people they don’t live with – each with a profile, personalized recommendations, login and password – for an extra CAD$7.99 a month per person in Canada, NZD$7.99 in New Zealand, Euro 3.99 in Portugal, and Euro 5.99 in Spain.”
This article does not constitute investment advice. Each reader is encouraged to consult with his or her individual financial professional and any action a reader takes as a result of information presented here is his or her own responsibility.
ForgeRock to be acquired by Thoma Bravo for $23.25 per share in cash
ForgeRock announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement to be acquired by Thoma Bravo for $23.25 per share, in an all-cash transaction valued at approximately $2.3B.
The offer represents a premium of approximately 53% over ForgeRock’s closing share price on October 10, the last full trading day prior to the transaction announcement, and a premium of approximately 44% over the volume weighted average price of ForgeRock stock for the 30 days ending October 10.
The transaction, which was unanimously approved by the ForgeRock board of directors, is currently expected to close in the first half of 2023, subject to customary closing conditions, including approval by ForgeRock’s shareholders and the receipt of required regulatory approvals.
ForgeRock, Inc. operates a digital identity platform to secure, manage, and govern the identities of customers, employees, partners, application programing interfaces (APIs), microservices, devices, and the Internet of things worldwide. It offers identity management products to automate onboarding/registration and progressive profiling, identity lifecycle and relationship management, identity provisioning and synchronization, user self-service, personalization, delegation, and privacy and consent management.
Upon completion of the transaction, ForgeRock’s common stock will no longer be publicly listed and ForgeRock will become a privately held company.
This article does not constitute investment advice. Each reader is encouraged to consult with his or her individual financial professional and any action a reader takes as a result of information presented here is his or her own responsibility.
Biogen/Eisai’s phase 3 trial of lecanemab in MCI meet primary endpoint
Eisai (ESALY) and Biogen (BIIB) “announced positive topline results from Eisai’s large global Phase 3 confirmatory Clarity AD clinical trial of lecanemab, an investigational anti-amyloid beta protofibril antibody for the treatment of mild cognitive impairment due to Alzheimer’s disease, AD, and mild AD with confirmed presence of amyloid pathology in the brain.
#Lecanemab met the primary endpoint and all key secondary endpoints with highly statistically significant results.
#Eisai will discuss this data with regulatory authorities in the U.S., Japan and Europe with the aim to file for traditional approval in the US and for marketing authorization applications in Japan and Europe by the end of Eisai’s FY2022, which ends March 31, 2023.
Amyloid-related imaging abnormalities
Additionally, Eisai will present the Clarity AD study results on November 29, 2022, at the Clinical Trials on Alzheimer’s Congress, and publish the findings in a peer-reviewed medical journal. Lecanemab treatment met the primary endpoint and reduced clinical decline on the global cognitive and functional scale, CDR-SB, compared with placebo at 18 months by 27%, which represents a treatment difference in the score change of -0.45 in the analysis of Intent-to-treat population.
Starting as early as six months, across all time points, the treatment showed highly statistically significant changes in CDR-SB from baseline compared to placebo.
All key secondary endpoints were also met with highly statistically significant results compared with placebo.
Key secondary endpoints were the change from baseline at 18 months compared with placebo of treatment in amyloid levels in the brain measured by amyloid positron emission tomography, the AD Assessment Scale-cognitive subscale14, AD Composite Score and the AD Cooperative Study-Activities of Daily Living Scale for Mild Cognitive Impairment.”
ESALY last traded at $39.79. BIIB last traded at $197.50.
This article does not constitute investment advice. Each reader is encouraged to consult with his or her individual financial professional and any action a reader takes as a result of information presented here is his or her own responsibility.
Baker Hughes reports U.S. rig count up 4 to 763 rigs
Baker Hughes (BKR) reports that the U.S. rig count is up 4 from last week to 763.
U.S. Rig Count is up 251 rigs from last year’s count of 511 with oil rigs up 239, gas rigs up 58 and miscellaneous rigs up 4.
The U.S. Offshore Rig Count is unchanged at 16, up one year-over-year.
The Canada Rig Count is up 6 from last week to 211, with oil rigs up 3 to 140, gas rigs down 4 to 63.
The Canada Rig Count is up 47 rigs from last year’s count of 156, with oil rigs up 45, gas rigs up 3 and miscellaneous rigs down 1.
The International Rig Count is up 27 rigs to 860 and up 81 from last year’s count.
The Baker Hughes rig counts are counts of the number of drilling rigs actively exploring for or developing oil or natural gas in the U.S., Canada and international markets.
The Company has issued the rig counts as a service to the petroleum industry since 1944, when Hughes Tool Company began weekly counts of the U.S. and Canadian drilling activity. The monthly international rig count was initiated in 1975.
Rig Counts Rise – See Stockwinners.com Market Radar to read more
West Texas Intermediate (WTI) is up 28 cents to $85.34 per barrel (down from a high of $123.70). Brent crude is up $0.72 to $91.54 per barre (down from a high of $127.98). Gasoline last traded at $2.418 per gallon (down from a high of $4.31 per gallon).
This article does not constitute investment advice. Each reader is encouraged to consult with his or her individual financial professional and any action a reader takes as a result of information presented here is his or her own responsibility.
Unity Software, IronSource to merge in a$4.4B all-stock deal
Unity (U) and ironSource (IS) announced that they have entered into a definitive agreement under which ironSource will merge into a wholly-owned subsidiary of Unity via an all-stock deal, where each ordinary share of ironSource will be exchanged for 0.1089 shares of Unity common stock.
Once closed, current Unity stockholders will own approximately 73.5% and current ironSource shareholders will own approximately 26.5% of the combined company.
The companies’ complementary offerings create a unique end-to-end platform that allows creators to create, publish, run, monetize, and grow live games and RT3D content seamlessly.
The proposed all-stock transaction has been approved by the boards of directors of both companies, is expected to close during Unity’s fourth quarter of 2022 and is subject to customary closing conditions, and regulatory and shareholder approval.
The combined company is expected to generate a run rate of $1B in Adjusted EBITDA by the end of 2024.
Six Months Chart of Unity
Unity Cuts Guidance
Unity Software cut FY22 revenue view to $1.3B-$1.35B from $1.35B-$1.425B – FY22 consensus was for $1.47B. Cites current assessment of macro trends, product launch and competitive dynamic with the monetization business.
Unity expects second quarter financial results to be slightly higher than the top end of the guidance range provided during its first quarter earnings call.
Needham
Needham analyst Bernie McTernan downgraded ironSource (IS) to Hold from Buy after the company announced its intent to merge with Unity (U) in an all-stock transaction. The analyst notes that ironSource shares trade at a 8% discount to the implied takeout price.
McTernan adds that the companies’ complementary platform fit, plus profitability that ironSource provides, were reasons for the large premium paid and will likely prevent smaller players from making an over-the-top offer as consolidation continues to be a theme in the mobile ad-tech space.
Piper Sandler
Piper downgrades Unity to Neutral, says ironSource deal creates overhang – Piper Sandler analyst Brent Bracelin downgraded Unity (U) to Neutral from Overweight with a price target of $34, down from $55, after the company announced a deal to merge with ironSource (IS).
While stating that the pending merger “appears to be a highly strategic acquisition that not only adds material scale and product breadth to the gaming segment but could also help improve profitability,” Bracelin cut his rating based on the near-term overhang that he sees the merger creating as well as increased execution risk over the next six to nine months.
DA Davidson
DA Davidson analyst Franco Granda lowered the firm’s price target on Unity (U) to $60 from $85 and keeps a Buy rating on the shares. The company’s deal to acquire ironSource (IS) is “very attractive” due to the confluence of revenue and cost synergies, attractive valuation, and highly complementary tech stack amidst a backdrop of privacy-driven platform changes and macro pressures, though his reduced price target reflects lower broader market multiples, the analyst tells investors in a research note.
Ark Investments
Cathie Wood’s ARK Investment bought 1.02M shares of Unity on Wednesday.
This article does not constitute investment advice. Each reader is encouraged to consult with his or her individual financial professional and any action a reader takes as a result of information presented here is his or her own responsibility.
North American rail traffic fell 7.5% for the week ending April 16
The Association of American Railroads, AAR, reported U.S. rail traffic for the week ending April 16.
For this week, total U.S. weekly rail traffic was 489,801 carloads and intermodal units, down 8.1% compared with the same week last year.
Total carloads for the week ending April 16 were 221,228 carloads, down 6.8% compared with the same week in 2021, while U.S. weekly intermodal volume was 268,573 containers and trailers, down 9.2% compared to 2021. North American rail volume for the week ending April 16 on 12 reporting U.S., Canadian and Mexican railroads totaled 319,064 carloads, down 6.8% compared with the same week last year, and 354,060 intermodal units, down 8.1% compared with last year.
Total combined weekly rail traffic in North America was 673,124 carloads and intermodal units, down 7.5%.
North American rail volume for the first 15 weeks of 2022 was 9,987,458 carloads and intermodal units, down 3.9% compared with 2021.
Publicly traded companies in the space include CSX (CSX), Canadian National (CNI), Canadian Pacific (CP), Kansas City Southern (KSU), Norfolk Southern (NSC), Trinity Industries (TRN), Greenbrier (GBX), Wabtec (WAB), FreightCar America (RAIL), Union Pacific (UNP) and GATX (GATX).
This article does not constitute investment advice. Each reader is encouraged to consult with his or her individual financial professional and any action a reader takes as a result of information presented here is his or her own responsibility.
Google to acquire Mandiant for $23.00 per share in cash
Alphabet’s Google (GOOGL) announced that it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Mandiant (MNDT) for $23.00 per share, in an all-cash transaction valued at approximately $5.4B, inclusive of Mandiant’s net cash.
Upon the close of the acquisition, Mandiant will join Google Cloud.
With the addition of Mandiant, Google Cloud will enhance offerings to deliver an end-to-end security operations suite with even greater capabilities to support customers across their cloud and on-premise environments.
The acquisition of Mandiant is subject to customary closing conditions, including the receipt of Mandiant stockholder and regulatory approvals, and is expected to close later this year.
Piper Sandler
Piper Sandler analyst Thomas Champion said he thinks the deal makes strategic sense given Google’s move further into the Enterprise. The Mandiant acquisition should complement Google Cloud Platform’s current security offerings, which include BeyondCorp Enterprise and VirusTotal, said Champion, who reiterates his Overweight rating and $3,475 price target on Alphabet shares.
Wedbush
Wedbush analyst Daniel Ives notes that this deal is all about Mandiant being further integrated into Google Cloud with more cyber threats facing enterprises/governments on the transformational shift to cloud and Mandiant establishing itself as “the Navy Seals of cyber security” over the last decade, the analyst contends.
#Ives believes this deal will have a major ripple impact across the cyber security space as cloud stalwarts Amazon (AMZN) and Microsoft (MSFT) will now be pressured into M&A and further bulk up its cloud platforms.
The analyst thinks cyber names such as Varonis (VRNS), Tenable (TENB), CyberArk (CYBR), Qualys (QLYS), Rapid7 (RPD), SailPoint (SAIL), and Ping (PING) standout as potential M&A candidates in cyber security given these vendors laser focus on protecting next generation cloud workloads from cyberattacks.
This article does not constitute investment advice. Each reader is encouraged to consult with his or her individual financial professional and any action a reader takes as a result of information presented here is his or her own responsibility.
Citrix to be acquired by Vista, Evergreen in $16.5B all-cash transaction
Citrix (CTXS) announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement under which affiliates of Vista Equity Partners, a global investment firm focused exclusively on enterprise software, data and technology-enabled businesses, and Evergreen, an affiliate of Elliott, will acquire Citrix in an all-cash transaction valued at $16.5B, including the assumption of Citrix debt.
Under the terms of the agreement, Citrix shareholders will receive $104.00 in cash per share.
The per share purchase price represents a premium of 30% over the company’s unaffected 5-day VWAP as of December 7, 2021, the last trading day before market speculation regarding a potential transaction, and a premium of 24% over the closing price on December 20, 2021, the last trading day prior to media reports regarding a potential bid from Vista and Evergreen.
In connection with the transaction, Vista and Evergreen intend to combine Citrix and Tibco Software, one of Vista’s portfolio companies.
Citrix makes software that workers use to log onto to their corporate programs virtually, a category of product extensively relied upon during the pandemic as businesses sought quick ways to keep remote workforces connected to central operations. Many are now planning permanent hybrid setups for home and office working, which is expected to grow the market for tools that help make this seamless.
As part of the transaction, Vista and Evergreen plan to combine Citrix with Tibco Software, an enterprise data management firm that’s one of Vista’s portfolio companies. The combination will create one of the world’s largest software providers, serving 400,000 customers, according to the statement.
This article does not constitute investment advice. Each reader is encouraged to consult with his or her individual financial professional and any action a reader takes as a result of information presented here is his or her own responsibility.
Jazz Pharmaceuticals announces $5B revenue target for 2025
Jazz Pharmaceuticals (JAZZ) announced its Vision 2025 to deliver sustainable growth and enhanced value.
Vision 2025 includes the following expectations: 1) generating $5B in revenue in 2025; 2) approval of at least five additional novel products by the end of the decade; and 3) realizing a 5% adjusted operating margin improvement from 2021 to 2025, driven by operational excellence.
The company also confirmed that it expects to meet its previously announced 2021 revenue guidance range of $3.02B-$3.1B and its net product sales guidance for neuroscience and oncology.
Jazz ended 2021 demonstrating executional excellence across its business, including launching five key products in 2020 and 2021, integrating the GW Pharmaceuticals business, making progress towards its deleveraging target and initiating multiple potentially registrational clinical trials.
The company remains on track to deliver revenue diversification, with at least 65% of 2022 net product revenue from newly launched or acquired products, driving sustainable growth and enhanced shareholder value.
“Building on our track record of strong execution and guided by our patient-centric approach, Jazz is setting forth its Vision 2025 to deliver meaningful treatment options to patients, a great place to work for employees and significant value to shareholders,” said Bruce Cozadd, chairman and CEO of Jazz Pharmaceuticals.
“Jazz’s leadership in sleep and rare epilepsy with Xywav and Epidiolex, respectively, coupled with promising new oncology products like Zepzelca and Rylaze, have led to the rapid transformation of our revenue base.
We are further poised to enter new disease areas with serious unmet patient need and substantial market potential, including movement disorders and PTSD, with our mid-to late-stage assets nabiximols, suvecaltamide and JZP150.
We expect our continued operational excellence to drive a five-percentage point improvement in our adjusted operating margin from 2021 to 2025, and we are confident in our ability to continue to leverage strategic capital allocation to grow our business.”
In Monday’s trading shares of JAZZ are up $10.49 to $144.91.
This article does not constitute investment advice. Each reader is encouraged to consult with his or her individual financial professional and any action a reader takes as a result of information presented here is his or her own responsibility.
Lumentum to acquire NeoPhotonics for $16 per share in cash
Lumentum (LITE) and NeoPhotonics (NPTN) announced that they have entered into a definitive agreement under which Lumentum will acquire NeoPhotonics for $16.00 per share in cash, which represents a total equity value of approximately $918M.
NeoPhotonics Corporation develops, manufactures, and sells optoelectronic products that transmit and receive high speed digital optical signals for cloud and hyperscale data center internet content provider and telecom networks worldwide.
Lumentum Holdings Inc. manufactures and sells optical and photonic products in the Americas, the Asia-Pacific, Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. The company operates in two segments, Optical Communications (OpComms) and Commercial Lasers (Lasers).
Laser chips made by Lumentum
The transaction has been unanimously approved by the boards of directors of both companies.
The purchase price represents a premium of approximately 39% to NeoPhotonics’ closing stock price on November 3, 2021.
Laser chips made by NeoPhotonics
Lumentum intends to finance the transaction through cash from the combined company’s balance sheet.
Related to the transaction, Lumentum will provide up to $50M in term loans to NeoPhotonics to fund anticipated growth, which may require increased working capital and manufacturing capacity.
The transaction is expected to close in the second half of calendar year 2022, subject to approval by NeoPhotonics’ stockholders, receipt of regulatory approvals, and other customary closing conditions.
“With NeoPhotonics, we’re making another important investment in better serving our customers and expanding our photonics capabilities at a time when photonics are at the forefront of favorable long-term market trends. At the center of our strategy is a relentless focus on developing a differentiated portfolio with the most innovative products and technology in our industry so that we can help our customers compete and win in their respective markets.
Adding NeoPhotonics’ differentiated products and technology and innovative R&D team is consistent with this strategy and together, we will better meet the growing need for next generation optical networking solutions. We are confident this transaction will make us an even better partner to our customers, while enabling our team to deliver significant, long-term value to our stockholders. We look forward to welcoming NeoPhotonics’ talented team of employees to Lumentum,” said Alan Lowe, Lumentum President and CEO.
This article does not constitute investment advice. Each reader is encouraged to consult with his or her individual financial professional and any action a reader takes as a result of information presented here is his or her own responsibility.
Workhorse Group suspends deliveries of C-1000 vehicles, recalls 41 that it had delivered
Workhorse Group Inc. (WKHS) shares plunged on Wednesday to their lowest in fifteen months after the beleaguered electric-vehicle maker said it will suspend deliveries of its vans and recall units it has already delivered.
Workhorse Group (WKHS) provided an update to its ongoing review of the Company’s business and go-forward operating and commercial plans to transition from an advanced technology start-up to an efficient manufacturing company.
The electric van, called the C-1000, would require additional testing and modifications to existing vehicles in order to certify them under federal motor vehicle safety standards, the company said in a statement.
The Company stopped delivery of its C-1000
The Company has identified a number of enhancements in the production process and design of the C-1000 to address customer feedback, primarily related to vehicle dynamics to increase the vehicles’ payload capacity.
As Workhorse has identified these enhancements and continued its review and redesign of the C-1000, the Company has decided to suspend deliveries of C-1000 vehicles and recall 41 vehicles it has already delivered.
As part of these efforts, the new leadership team has determined that additional testing and modifications to existing vehicles are required to certify the C-1000 vehicles under Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard.
The Company expects to complete testing in the fourth quarter of 2021.
Workhorse intends to provide an update on its operating and commercial plans on its upcoming third quarter 2021 earnings call.
The Company has filed a report with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration regarding the need for additional testing and vehicle modifications to certify its C-1000 vehicles under FMVSS, and intends to fully coordinate with NHTSA.
The Company has not received any customer reports of safety issues related to this matter in any of the C-1000 vehicles previously delivered by Workhorse.
Additional details will be available in the Company’s filing with NHTSA.
Accordingly, the Company’s previous statements related to the C-1000’s compliance with NHTSA standards cannot be relied upon and the Company has so notified the Securities and Exchange Commission.
#Cowen analyst Jeffrey #Osborne lowered his price target on the company to $7.50 from $8.50, and also reduced his estimates for 2021 and 2022 after the announcement, saying a “turnaround appears more challenging.” The analyst also expects working capital to likely be challenged due to prepayments for batteries and other critical materials.
According to some reports, the company is being investigated by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, as well as disappointment related to losing out on a U.S. Postal Service contract that many had expected Workhorse to win.
WKHS closed at $7.41. Shares have a 52-week high of $42.96.
This article does not constitute investment advice. Each reader is encouraged to consult with his or her individual financial professional and any action a reader takes as a result of information presented here is his or her own responsibility.
Spectrum Brands agrees to sell Hardware & Home Improvement segment for $4.3B
Spectrum Brands Holdings (SPB) announced it has entered into a definitive agreement to sell its HHI segment to ASSA ABLOY (ASAZY) for $4.3B in cash, which it said represents over 14 times HHI’s expected FY21 Adjusted EBITDA.
Upon closing of the transaction, Spectrum Brands expects to receive approximately $3.5B in net proceeds, subject to final tax calculations and purchase price adjustments.
Spectrum Brands expects to use the proceeds from this transaction to repay debt and reduce its gross leverage ratio to approximately 2.5x times in the near term.
Excess proceeds are expected to be allocated to invest for organic growth, fund complementary acquisitions and return capital to shareholders.
The company expects to maintain its quarterly cash dividend of 42c per common share, which will be subject to the company’s continued review from time to time.
The sale of HHI is expected to close following the receipt of certain regulatory approvals and customary closing conditions.
The results of operations of HHI will be reported as discontinued operations beginning in the fourth quarter of 2021. David Maura, CEO of Spectrum Brands, said, “I am exceedingly proud of the fact that our Hardware & Home Improvement business nearly doubled its EBITDA under Spectrum Brands’ ownership.
I am pleased to know that HHI has found a new home with a great partner, and I am confident that ASSA ABLOY will take it to its highest potential, bringing great value and innovation to consumers for generations to come.
We believe this transaction demonstrates the tremendous value of Spectrum Brands as an owner and steward of our businesses and places the Company in a strong position for the future by allowing us to further reduce our leverage levels, and enhance our capital allocation strategy.
Our remaining business will be more focused, allowing us to prioritize innovation to accelerate organic growth and pursue synergistic acquisitions to further drive value creation in Global Pet Care and Home & Garden, while continuing to look for strategic and organic ways to enhance the value of Home and Personal Care.
After the closing, we will become a more pure play consumer staples company with higher growth rates and strong margins.”
The company added: “Spectrum Brands will be a simplified business consisting of three focused business units with leading market share, strong growth opportunities and consistent performance.
The pro forma business generated $3.0B in net sales and $386 million in Adjusted EBITDA representing a 13.0% margin for the LTM period ended July 4, 2021.
Spectrum Brands will report its fourth quarter 2021 results in mid-November and expects to provide Fiscal 2022 Earnings Framework at that time.”
ASSA ABLOY AB is a Swedish company that provides door opening products, solutions, and services for the institutional, commercial, and residential markets in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, North and South America, Asia, and Oceania. In addition, the company offers entrance automation products, services, and components, such as automatic swing, sliding, and revolving doors; industrial doors; garage doors; high-performance doors; docking solutions; hangar doors; gate automation products; components for overhead sectional doors and sensors; and high security fencings and gates. The company provides its products primarily under the ASSA ABLOY, Yale, and HID brands.
Spectrum’s Hardware & Home Improvement segment offers hardware products under the National Hardware and FANAL brands; locksets and door hardware under the Kwikset, Weiser, Baldwin, EZSET, and Tell Manufacturing brands; and plumbing products under the Pfister brand. Its Home and Personal Care segment provides home appliances under the Black & Decker, Russell Hobbs, George Foreman, Toastmaster, Juiceman, Farberware, and Breadman brands; and personal care products under the Remington and LumaBella brands.
The company’s Global Pet Care segment provides rawhide chewing, dog and cat clean-up and food, training, health and grooming, small animal food and care, and rawhide-free products under the 8IN1 (8-in-1), Dingo, Nature’s Miracle, Wild Harvest, Littermaid, Jungle, Excel, FURminator, IAMS, Eukanuba, Healthy-Hide, DreamBone, SmartBones, ProSense, Perfect Coat, eCOTRITION, Birdola, and Digest-eeze brands.
ASAZY is down 38 cents to $15.53 per share while SPB is up $15 to $94.
This article does not constitute investment advice. Each reader is encouraged to consult with his or her individual financial professional and any action a reader takes as a result of information presented here is his or her own responsibility.
New Fortress Energy to buy Hygo ,Golar LNG Partners combined in $5B deal
New Fortress Energy (NFE) announced that it has entered into definitive agreements to acquire Hygo Energy Transition a 50-50 joint venture between Golar LNG Limited (GLNG) and Stonepeak Infrastructure Fund II Cayman.
New Fortress goes shopping
“With a strong presence in Brazil and a world-class LNG shipping business, Hygo and GMLP are excellent additions to our efforts to accelerate the world’s energy transition,” said Wes Edens, Chairman and CEO of NFE.
“The addition of Hygo will quickly expand our footprint in South America with three gas-to-power projects in Brazil’s large and fast-growing market. With GMLP, we gain LNG ships and world-class operators that are an ideal fit to support our existing terminals and robust pipeline.”
“We are impressed with what Wes Edens and the NFE team have created and their commitment to changing the energy industry,” said Golar LNG Chairman Tor Olav Troim.
“They share our vision to provide cheaper and cleaner energy to a growing population. The consolidation of two of the entrepreneurial LNG downstream players gives the company improved access to capital and creates a unique world-leading energy transition company which Golar shareholders will benefit from being a part of going forward.”
With the acquisition of Hygo, NFE will acquire an operating floating storage and regasification unit terminal and a 50% interest in a 1500MW power plant in Sergipe, Brazil as well as two other FSRU terminals with 1200MW of power in advanced stages in Brazil.
Hygo’s fleet consists of a newbuild FSRU and two operating LNG carriers.
NFE will also acquire a leading owner of FSRUs and LNG carriers as well as a pioneer in floating liquefaction technologies with the GMLP transaction.
The addition of GMLP’s fleet of six FSRUs, four LNG carriers and a 50% interest in Trains 1 and 2 of the Hilli, a floating liquefaction vessel, is expected to support both NFE’s , NFE will acquire all of the outstanding shares of Hygo for 31.4M shares of NFE Class A common stock and $580M in cash.
The transaction is valued at a $3.1B enterprise value and a $2.18B equity value.
Pursuant to the transaction, GLNG will receive 18.6 million shares of NFE Class A common stock and $50 million in cash and Stonepeak will receive 12.7 million shares of NFE Class A common stock and $530 million in cash.
Hygo’s Board of Directors, together with GLNG and Stonepeak, the shareholders of Hygo, have unanimously approved the proposed transaction with NFE.
The closing of the transaction is subject to the receipt of certain regulatory approvals and third party consents and other customary closing conditions, and is expected to occur in the first half of 2021.
Under NFE’s agreement with GMLP , NFE has agreed to acquire all of the outstanding common units of GMLP for $3.55 per common unit in cash.
NFE has also agreed to acquire GMLP’s general partner for equivalent consideration based on the general partner’s economic interest in GMLP.
The preferred units of GMLP will remain outstanding. The transaction is valued at a $1.9B enterprise value and $251 million common equity value.
GMLP’s Board of Directors, acting upon the recommendation of a special committee of independent directors of GMLP, unanimously approved the proposed transaction with NFE.
The closing of the transaction is subject to the approval by the holders of a majority of GMLP’s outstanding common units, the receipt of certain regulatory approvals and third party consents and other customary closing conditions, and is expected to occur in the first half of 2021.
GLNG has entered into a support agreement with NFE committing to vote its approximately 30.8% interest in GMLP’s common units in favor of the transaction.
This article does not constitute investment advice. Each reader is encouraged to consult with his or her individual financial professional and any action a reader takes as a result of information presented here is his or her own responsibility.
GigCapital2 to combine with UpHealth, Cloudbreak Health in $1.35B merger
GigCapital2 (GIX) announced that it has entered into two separate definitive business combination agreements with each of UpHealth and Cloudbreak Health to form a combined entity that will create a publicly traded, global digital healthcare company.
Digital healthcare has become more prevalent during the pandemic
Upon the closing of the transaction, the combined company will be named UpHealth and will continue to be listed on the NYSE under the new ticker symbol (UPH).
Following the combination, UpHealth will be a global digital healthcare company serving an entire spectrum of healthcare needs and will be established in fast growing sectors of the digital health industry.
With its combinations, Upon closing the pending mergers and the combination with Cloudbreak, UpHealth will be organized across four capabilities at the intersection of population health management and telehealth: Integrated Care Management, Global Telehealth, Digital Pharmacy, and Tech-enabled Behavioral Health.
Following the consummation of the transactions, UpHealth will have agreements to deliver digital healthcare in more than 10 countries globally.
These various companies are expected to generate approximately $115M in revenue and over $13M of EBITDA in 2020 and following the combination, UpHealth expects to generate over $190M in revenue and $24M in EBITDA in 2021.
The business combinations were unanimously approved by the boards of directors of all parties, valuing the combined company at a combined pro forma enterprise value of approximately $1.35B.
The proposed business combinations are expected to be completed in Q1 2021, subject to, among other things, the approval by GigCapital2 stockholders, regulatory approvals, and the satisfaction or waiver of other customary closing conditions.
This article does not constitute investment advice. Each reader is encouraged to consult with his or her individual financial professional and any action a reader takes as a result of information presented here is his or her own responsibility.
