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’GE could lose its triple-A, S&P says
Is nothing sacred? (Answer: no)
GE could lose its shiny triple-A rating within the next two years, S&P said on Thursday, citing concerns around earnings and cash flow. Likelihood of such a thing? One in three,
NAB eyes GE’s Australian mortgage unit
National Australia Bank was in advanced talks to buy General Electric’s Australian mortgage distribution network, as traditional banks move in to benefit from opportunities created by the global credit crisis,
GE expects to miss profits forecast
General Electric on Tuesday said it would miss its annual profits forecast and warned that the credit crisis would continue taking its toll on the company’s finance arm for at least another year. The US conglomerate warned analysts its Q4 results would be hit by a charge of up to $1.4bn for additional credit losses and restructuring at GE Capital,
GE slips 9% on public offering price
General Electric’s shares slipped 9% after the conglomerate priced its $12.2bn stock sale below Tuesday’s close. The public offering, along with a $3bn preferred share sale to Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway,
Buffett signs up to $15bn GE plan
General Electric on Wednesday unveiled plans to raise at least $15bn in capital from stock sales to the public and Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway, in the conglomerate’s latest bid to restore confidence in its financial strength.
GE issues second profit warning
General Electric underlined the depth of the financial crisis on Thursday, issuing its second profit warning of the year and announcing drastic moves to conserve cash, cut debt and reduce its reliance on its financial services division.
GATX offers $3bn-plus for GE unit
GATX Corp , the US lease-financing company, is offering more than $3bn for General Electric’s rail car leasing business, reports Reuters. GATX is the leading bidder for the unit and negotiations are ongoing,
Asciano rejects TPG’s A$2.9bn offer
Asciano, the Australian-listed ports and rail operator, on Monday night rejected a A$2.9bn ($2.7bn) cash takeover proposal, claiming that an unsolicited offer it had received from a team led by TPG Capital and a General Electric-backed fund undervalued its business.
Abu Dhabi aims to join GE shareholders
Mubadala, Abu Dhabi’s increasingly powerful state investment vehicle, said Tuesday it planned to become one of the 10 biggest institutional investors in General Electric as it announced a series of deals with the US group,
LG eyes GE appliance arm bid
South Korea’s LG Electronics is considering a bid for General Electric’s appliance business and is likely to hire an investment bank to advise on the deal. Senior executives at LG have been authorised to prepare a detailed evaluation of the merits of a bid,
China’s Haier considers bid for GE unit
Chinese white-goods maker Qingdao Haier is considering a bid for General Electric’s appliance business and has begun to approach investment banks to advise it. Haier is one of a large group of potential bidders across the globe with an interest in acquiring the GE operations,
LG, Haier may bid for GE Appliances unit: Immelt
LG Electronics and Haier Group are among the companies that may acquire General Electric’s century-old appliances division, said Jeffrey Immelt, GE’s chief executive, reports Bloomberg. “The players become very obvious,” Immelt told a meeting of business leaders in Seoul on Wednesday.
GE appoints Goldman to sell appliances unit
General Electric is preparing to sell or divest its appliances unit in a move that could raise some $7bn and sever its century-long links with one of its oldest businesses, reports the FT. The WSJ says GE has hired Goldman Sachs to run an auction for the appliances unit,
Welch in rare rebuke to Immelt
Jack Welch, the former head of GE, delivered a blunt rebuke to his handpicked successor on Wednesday, saying the conglomerate’s unexpectedly poor Q1 earnings report last Friday was a “screw-up” that left Jeffrey Immelt with a “credibility issue”.
GE to invest $2bn in China M&A
General Electric plans to invest up to $2bn in acquisitions and other deals in China over the next three years as part of a strategy to double its revenues in the country. The world’s biggest industrial company,
Weekend catch-up
In case you missed these stories:
‘Shocking’ GE results show size of crisis
General Electric on Friday announced its worst quarter in five years and slashed full-year forecasts, in a move described as “shocking” by a senior GE executive.
GE Money moving to London
General Electric is moving the headquarters of its core consumer finance division from Connecticut to London in a move symbolising a shift in the US conglomerate’s centre of gravity. The decision by one of the largest and oldest companies in the US to relocate a business with $25bn of revenues a year to London underlines the increasingly global nature of GE.
Biffa bidders hasten to quell rival approach
Hg Capital and Montagu, the private equity bidders in talks to buy Biffa, plan to complete their due diligence of the waste management group in the next few weeks to beat a possible rival offer. The investment consortium,
US bidders vie for UK’s Whatman
Four US bidders, including General Electric and Danaher, are vying to win control of Whatman, the UK laboratory equipment company, which provides DNA technology to the police. Whatman, which has appointed Goldman Sachs to run the sale process,
GE to double renewable energy investments
General Electric will on Monday announce plans to double its investments in renewable energies to $6bn by 2010 in the latest sign of the push by big companies to capitalise on concerns over global warming and pollution.
NY Times, CNBC, unite against News Corp
CNBC, the cable business network, and the New York Times have joined forces to create an alliance against Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp. The two companies announced a content-sharing agreement on Monday in which CNBC,
Blackstone’s PHH deal hit by credit squeeze
A $1.8bn deal between General Electric and Blackstone to acquire PHH, a mortgage and leasing business, became the latest casualty of turmoil in the credit markets as PHH said on Tuesday it had terminated the agreement.
GE seeks partner for finance division
General Electric underlined the struggle faced by US companies with a slowing economy and the credit squeeze on Tuesday when it announced profit forecasts well below Wall Street estimates and a shake-up of its US consumer finance unit.
Taiwan’s Cosmos close to finalising debt swap
Cosmos Bank, Taiwan’s largest issuer of cash cards, edged closer to completing its recapitalisation on Wednesday as more than 93% of bondholders agreed to exchange T$12.4bn ($382m) in debt for an 11% equity stake.
GE fund investors liquidate holdings
General Electric said on Wednesday its short-term bond fund ran into trouble amid losses on asset-backed securities and that all its outside investors have liquidated their holdings, reports Reuters. GEAM,
Lombard: Takeover targets, beware the ‘unbashful bridegrooms’
New chief executives used to enjoy a relatively lengthy honeymoon period. These days, judging from the experience at BHP Billiton (for Rio Tinto), Carlsberg (going after Scottish & Newcastle) and Rio Tinto itself (which successfully bid for Alcan),
Blackstone deal loses appeal
The likelihood of Blackstone abandoning an agreement to purchase a North American mortgage lender is growing, despite the private equity firm’s reputation for never walking away from a deal. The original plan was for Blackstone and a unit of GE to pay $1.8bn for the mortgage and fleet lease business of PHH,
NBC sale ruled out
General Electric has ruled out a sale of $40bn media arm NBC in the near future. People close to the situation say that Jeffrey Immelt, GE’s chairman and chief executive, will not consider the future of GE’s 80 per cent stake in NBC before the Beijing Olympics.
GE to take $1.4bn quarterly charge
General Electric is to take a charge of up to $1.4bn in the third quarter to pay for the exit from its Japanese personal loan business and US subprime unit in an attempt to reduce its exposure to troubled areas of the consumer finance market.