Betting on the outcome of a buyout is no easy feat. Will there be a heated auction? Or will the bidders have doubts and want price concessions?

The result is often much volatility. Just look at Beckman Coulter (BEC), a top medical diagnostic instruments company. In early December, the company put itself up for sale and the stock price surged to $72. Since then, the shares have traded in band of $71 to $75.

Continue reading Danaher Shells Out $6.8 Billion for Beckman Coulter

Danaher Shells Out $6.8 Billion for Beckman Coulter originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 07 Feb 2011 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading BP, ProSight and Carlyle Group Make Key Acquisitions

BP, ProSight and Carlyle Group Make Key Acquisitions originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 15 Jul 2010 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Even for top private equity firms, it's extremely tough to raise new funds. Investors are changing their allocations and also concerned about future returns. For example, private equity firms raised only $13 billion in Q1, which was the lowest since 2004. The peak came in Q1 of 2008, when the amount was roughly $68 billion.

As a result, private equity firms need to get creative, such as focusing on new markets.

Continue reading Carlyle Snags $1.1 Billion for Financial Services Deals

Carlyle Snags $1.1 Billion for Financial Services Deals originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 06 Apr 2010 13:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

A few years ago, SS&C Technologies had some bad timing. The company attempted to pull off an IPO. However, because of the global financial crisis, the offering had to be pulled.

Well, as the markets have since improved, SS&C Technologies is taking another try. This week, the company refiled for an IPO.

Continue reading Carlyle-Backed Software Operator Tries for an IPO ... Again

Carlyle-Backed Software Operator Tries for an IPO ... Again originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 30 Dec 2009 13:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Up until the credit crisis, private equity firms had it made. They had plenty of leverage to play with and could load up their acquisition targets with it. So, they could realize a fantastic return on equity, mitigate their own risks, and show that they were the studs of the Street.

Then, all that went away. Credit markets dried up, and private equity companies lost their acquisition fuel. The numbers aren't as big as they used to be, but it looks like the private equity market is back in action.

Continue reading Private equity biz back in action

Private equity biz back in action originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 15 Oct 2009 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Carlyle sees huge potential in Chinese dairy sector

Carlyle sees huge potential in Chinese dairy sector originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 21 Sep 2009 14:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

According to the Wall Street Journal, China's government recently has pushed development of its local private-equity industry so that Chinese investors can get in on the country's private-equity deals. To that end, Chinese officials have tried to lure foreign money managers to raise funds from local investors.

Hong Kong-based First Eastern Investment Group, which plans to raise six billion yuan through a new wholly owned Shanghai subsidiary, and Asian brokerage CLSA Ltd., which plans to raise a 10 billion yuan fund through a joint-venture with state holding company Shanghai Guosheng Co., are just the latest to establish local-currency private-equity funds in Shanghai.

Continue reading Private equity heats up in China

Private equity heats up in China originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 17 Aug 2009 18:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Private equity is about continuous dealmaking. But, with the wrenching credit crunch, activity has been horrible.

So, what to do? Interestingly enough, it looks like some of the top private equity operators are signing up for board duties.

Look at GM, which this week announced five new members to its board. In fact, three of them are from major private equity firms: The Carlyle Group's Daniel Akerson, S. J. Girsky & Co.'s Stephen Girsky and TPG's David Bonderman.

What's going on here? True, private equity has taken quite a few lumps over the past couple years. For example, Bonderman lost a bundle on his Washington Mutual transaction (which was one of the worst private equity deals in history).

Continue reading Next big thing for private equity? Board assignments

Next big thing for private equity? Board assignments originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 24 Jul 2009 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

The Carlyle Group, which is an $85 billion private equity powerhouse, recently published its annual report. It's a sobering document.

However, there are some interesting tidbits. For example, despite the financial turmoil -- where three deals went bust -- Carlyle was still able to raise $19.9 billion. What's more, the firm invested $12.6 billion in equity last year.

What about the future? Well, Carlyle's co-founder, David Rubenstein, who gave a presentation at the Aspen Global Leadership Network conference, offered some insight on what's ahead, according to BusinessWeek.

Continue reading Carlyle's David Rubenstein sees slow-growth, inflation ahead

Carlyle's David Rubenstein sees slow-growth, inflation ahead originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 15 Jun 2009 10:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Not long ago, the private equity firm, Fortress Investment Group LLC (NYSE: FIG), appeared to be in deep trouble. But things are looking better now, as the stock price has gone from $1 to $4.65 this year.

In fact, Fortress is now pulling the trigger on some deals. Just this week, the firm teamed up with Crestview Partners LP and Lightyear Capital LLC to invest $450 million in First Southern Bancorp (Lightyear is operated by Donald Marron, who was the former chief of PaineWebber Group).

Continue reading Fortress storms a bank

Fortress storms a bank originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sun, 31 May 2009 14:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

In order to end the two-year-old inquiry by New York Attorney General Andrew M. Cuomo into its pension business, the Carlyle Group has agreed to pay $20 million and make broad changes to its practices. Carlyle, one of the world's largest private equity firms, will no longer use intermediaries, known as placement agents, to secure investment business from public pension funds, and it will curb its campaign contributions to elected officials who oversee pension funds.

"This is a revolutionary agreement," Cuomo said Thursday. "I believe it totally changes the way people operate: It ends pay-to-play, it bans the selling of access, it puts the political power brokers out of business."

Continue reading Carlyle to pay $20 million to end New York pension probe

Carlyle to pay $20 million to end New York pension probe originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 15 May 2009 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Like most other private equity firms, the Carlyle Group is in the process of cleaning things up. For example, the firm has taken write downs on funds, such as the Carlyle Partners IV platform. The fund was launched in the heyday of 2005, with $7.9 billion in assets.

But, at the same time, Carlyle is trying to find ways to capitalize on the low-valuation environment or even find growth opportunities. Just take a look at the latest fund: the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) fund, which has commitments of up to $500 million.

Continue reading Carlyle heads to the Middle East with $500 million

Carlyle heads to the Middle East with $500 million originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 09 Mar 2009 12:50:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

At the SuperReturn conference this week, some of the biggest players in private equity are giving their opinions on the market. For example, the Carlyle Group's David Rubenstein says there are some compelling values as in energy and even finance -- so long, of course, as the federal government is willing to pitch in some capital and provide a backstop.

However, don't expect the go-go days to come back any time soon. In fact, Rubenstein believes that the balance-of-power has shifted to major investors, such as pension funds and endowments. Essentially, they are going to require more discipline, transparency and lower fees. This is assuming that a private equity firm can raise any capital (after all, it's likely that the 2006-2007 vintage funds will sustain losses for some time).

Continue reading Private equity: Waiting for valuations to bottom

Private equity: Waiting for valuations to bottom originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 04 Feb 2009 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

In early December, the powerhouse private equity shop, the Carlyle Group, announced layoffs of 10% of its workforce. Let's face it, there's not much deal making lately.

Well, now it looks like another biggie in private equity is letting go of workers: the Blackstone Group LLP (NYSE: BX).

In all, the cuts are expected to come to 70 positions (the firm has about 1,300 employees), according to Bloomberg.com.

Back in November, Blackstone's chief, Stephen Schwarzman, was actually bullish on things. This was despite a terrible Q3, in which the firm reported losses of $502.5 million, or $0.44 per share.

For the most part, Schwarzman is eyeing some good deals (although, there has yet to be much activity). Also, he thinks there will be lots of growth in restructuring. In fact, General Motors (NYSE: GM) has hired Blackstone to help with restructuring options.

Despite all this, investors are quite skeptical of Blackstone. Simply put, the firm's portfolio write-downs do not seem to reflect the severe economic environment. Then again, Blackstone's shares have continued to languish.

Continue reading Blackstone chips away at its workforce

Blackstone chips away at its workforce originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sat, 13 Dec 2008 11:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

As layoffs have spread across banking, investment banks and hedge funds, things have been fairly quiet for private equity firms. Then again, these operators tend to have small employee bases.

But, interestingly enough, we may be finally seeing some pink slips for the private equity folks. According to The Wall Street Journal, 3i will announce a 15% cut in its staff and that there will be a 19% cut at American Capital.

And now it looks like the tier-1 firms are not immune. The Carlyle Group is gutting 10% of its staff this week (which comes to about 100 people). There's not much deal-making to do right now. Besides, it looks like it will be tougher for private equity firms to raise new capital. If anything, the focus will be on trying to manage the existing portfolios.

What's more, Carlyle has had a variety of blunders. There was the implosion of its mortgage fund (Carlyle Capital) and the recent bankruptcy of its Hawaiian Telecom holding.

Of course, Carlyle is not alone. So, it's a good bet we'll start seeing more layoffs in the private equity world.

Tom Taulli is the author of various books, including The Complete M&A Handbook and The Streetsmart Guide to Short Selling: Techniques the Pros Use to Profit in Any Market. He is also the founder of BizEquity, a valuation website.

Pink slips at . . . Carlyle? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 03 Dec 2008 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

When getting the pulse on the credit markets, the private equity firms have a good sense of things. Credit is the lifeblood of the business. And, of course, the credit freeze has essentially stopped private equity activity.

But, according to some veteran private equity dealmakers, it does look like things are stabilizing. For example, the Blackstone Group LP's (NYSE: BX) CEO, Stephen Schwarzman, is optimistic that the environment is improving. The main reason: the massive government interventions.

And, this week we also got KKR's chief, Henry Kravis, to chime in. However, his sentiments are somewhat qualified. After all, he thinks that the real economy is in a fragile state and that investor confidence is still a big problem. What's more, he believes that it will take awhile for growth to comeback.

In the meantime, Kravis predicts a surge in consolidation in the financial services industry. Interestingly enough, some of the leaders in this trend could be operators like Blackstone and KKR, which don't have leveraged balance sheets.

Emphasizing this point is another private equity bigwig, the Carlyle Group's David Rubenstein. According to him, there's a huge opportunity for private equity firms to provide capital to the ailing financial services industry. In fact, the Federal government has recently relaxed some of the investment rules for such deals, which should make returns even more lucrative and give dealmakers more incentive to get transactions done.

Tom Taulli is the author of various books, including The Complete M&A Handbook and The Streetsmart Guide to Short Selling: Techniques the Pros Use to Profit in Any Market He is also the founder of BizEquity, a valuation website

Private equity's bigwigs zero-in on deals originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 15 Oct 2008 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Private equity powerhouse, The Carlyle Group, has more than 500 investment professionals across 21 countries. Of course, some of them are corporate luminaries like Louis Gerstner.

Well, after being the chairman of Carlyle since 2003, he is now departing -- his last day will be September 30th. Although, he will remain as a Senior Advisor to the firm.

Gerstner has had a stellar career. In 1993, he took the challenge of becoming IBM's (NYSE: IBM) chairman. At the time, the company was crumbling.

Despite not having much tech experience, Gerstner set forth an ambitious strategy that not only saved IBM but returned the company to greatness. He even wrote a book about his experience in a book called Who Says Elephants Can't Dance?: Leading a Great Enterprise through Dramatic Change, which is definitely worth reading.

Before his tenure at IBM, Gerstner was the CEO of RJR Nabisco, where he had to deal with the debt-load from a mega leveraged buyout (from KKR). He was also the president of American Express (NYSE: AXP) and a director of management at McKinsey & Co., Inc.

While at Carlyle, Gerstner made a big impact. He helped globalize the firm as well as diversify the investment base. As of now, Carlyle manages about $75 billion in assets across 57 funds and controls a portfolio that has aggregate revenues of $87 billion.

Tom Taulli is the author of various books, including The Complete M&A Handbook and The Edgar Online Guide to Decoding Financial Statements. He also operates MergerBook.com.

Gerstner leaves the Carlyle Group originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 20 Aug 2008 13:48:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Tom Taulli is the author of various books, including The Complete M&A Handbook and The Edgar Online Guide to Decoding Financial Statements. He also operates MergerBook.com.

Carlyle Group gets stung again on hedge funds originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 01 Aug 2008 11:50:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

When the Carlyle Group got its start in the late 1980s, the founders leveraged their extensive political backgrounds. It was certainly smart as the private equity firm struck some key deals (especially in the defense area).

Well, Carlyle is using its political savvy once again. This time, the firm wants to take advantage of the distressed valuations in the banking sector.

Basically, there is a complex set of regulations that make it extremely difficult for private equity firms to invest in banks. For example, there is an equity cap of 25% (which is often lower if the private equity firm wants more control).

So, in the Wall Street Journal, the Carlyle Managing Directors, Olivier Sarkozy and Randal Quarles, weighed in with an opinion piece.

The essential argument: the regulations are outmoded.

In fact, the rules may make our financial system weaker since there is tougher access to much-needed capital. After all, it seems that every day there is another bank that needs huge amounts of capital.

No doubt, Carlyle is being self-serving, and it will probably make a fortune from the regulatory changes.

At the same time, capitalism can be a powerful tool, and as a result, move things in the right direction. With $400 billion available in the coffers of private equity funds, this could be a big help to repair the big problems in the banking sector.

Interestingly enough, the issue appears to have some traction. According to a recent Wall Street Journal story, it looks like the Federal Reserve is thinking about relaxing some of the rules.

Tom Taulli is the author of various books, including The Complete M&A Handbook and The Edgar Online Guide to Decoding Financial Statements. He also operates MergerBook.com.

Carlyle says it can help save banks ... with juicy bank deals in return? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 27 Jun 2008 11:48:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Lost in the flurry of activity over the weekend surrounding The Bear Stearns Companies (NYSE: BSC) is this morning's news that Carlyle Capital, the subsidiary of the Washington-based private equity king Carlyle Group, is 'winding up.' MarketWatch reports that Carlyle Capital, 15% of which is owned by Carlyle Group partners, has more liabilities than assets.

It is interesting that Carlyle can't utter the word 'bankrupt' -- instead preferring the innocuous-sounding term: 'winding up.' But Carlyle shareholders will be left with nothing. And, as I posted, since Carlyle borrowed $32 for every dollar of equity, or $16.6 billion, to buy mortgage-backed securities (MBS), the banks who take possession of those MBSs will probably be eager to dump them as fast as possible -- unless they think they will get a better deal by waiting.

But why wait? After all, the Fed lent $30 billion to JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE: JPM) on a non-recourse basis to take over Bear Stearns's MBSs. This means that if Bear's MBSs go bad, the Fed will take the hit. Is there any active market at all right now for MBSs? If so, should the Fed just dump Bear's MBSs and take the hit now? Won't Carlyle Capital's banks do the same? And who will step in to buy all these MBSs? At what price?

Where does this all end?

Peter Cohan is President of Peter S. Cohan & Associates. He also teaches management at Babson College and edits The Cohan Letter. He has no financial interest in the securities mentioned.

Carlyle Capital collapses originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 17 Mar 2008 10:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.