>>> Banca Popolare dell’Etruria contacts BPM for possible merger

Banca Popolare dell’Etruria contacts BPM for possible merger

Banca Popolare dell’Etruria, the listed, Italian bank, has contacted representatives of listed, Italian peer BPM for a potential merger.

This was reported by Italian-language daily Il Messaggero which quoted unnamed sources.

Etruria's Chairman Francesco Rosi, and his two deputies, Alfredo Berni and Pierluigi Boschi, had contacted representatives of BPM, the article noted. The report said that on Monday 30 June, there will be a board meeting of Etruria, where Rosi will provide an update on the potential merger candidates.

However, the report said that the heads of BPM, Piero Giarda, Mario Anolli and Giuseppe Castagna, want to consult with the Bank of Italy to get a potential go ahead. Lazard and Rothschild are advising Etruria, the article added.

Meanwhile, the report said that BPM could consider a merger with Creval but only starting 2015. At the same time, Etruria has also contacted BPER for a possible merger, the report noted.


Source Il Messaggero

>>> Banco Popolare CEO sees draft of M&A banking deals in Italy

Banco Popolare CEO sees draft of M&A banking deals in Italy

Pierfrancesco Saviotti, chief executive of listed Italian bank BPI, has seen a new draft of M&A deals in Italy, reported Il Sole 24 Ore. He was quoted as saying that after the European Central Bank closes all the tests that it is conducting on Italian banks (asset quality review and stress tests), there will be more M&A deals in Italy. He said BPI will have an active role in this M&A process. Earlier, this week, BPI had decided to put on hold the sale of Release, its non-performing loans vehicle. Saviotti was quoted as saying that BPI is not in a hurry to sell and that it will separately sell some non performing loans, for which negotiations are ongoing.


Source Il Sole 24 Ore

>>> Barron's Summary: Positive on IP, NTAP, ADBE ; Cautious on VLO, RMD

Barron's Summary: Positive on IP, NTAP, ADBE ; Cautious on VLO, RMD 

- Cover story: Barrons list of the Worlds Most Respected Companies is topped by AAPL, BRKA, BA, GOOG, JNJ, DIS, AMZN, V, MA, and MMM; Criteria include operating metrics strong management, ethical business practices, sound business strategy, competitive edge, and product innovation. 

- Tech Trader: Chip stocks have been strong performers, and though the run is likely to cool in coming months, the fundamentals look good for companies themselves, which could power them to new gains in the next 12 months (Positive on AVGO, MRVL, MU, SWKS, TQNT). 

- Trader: Nobel Prize-winning economist Robert Shiller notes the market has looked more expensive on a cyclically adjusted price/earnings basis only three other times in the past 130 years: 1929, 2000, and 2007; Cautious on VLO: Shares are down on news Commerce Department will allow oil producers to export some forms of unrefined crude, but investor concerns may be overblown, and shares are trading at a 15% discount to historic multiple. 

- Features: Positive on IP: Shares of paper and packaging company are among the cheapest in its peer group, and could see a 40% boost as economy recovers and company ramps up dividend payouts and stock buybacks; Positive on NTAP: Company is replacing lower-end OEM sales with lucrative branded sales and is initiating buybacks, which could prompt dirt-cheap shares to rise 25% or more; Positive on ADBE: While peers dithered on cloud computing, company embraced it, creating a subscription program to replace boxed software, a move that has led to steady earnings growth and a potential 20% rise in share price; Cautious on RMD: As Medicare works on ways to limit costs for sleep-apnea treatments, among its top outpatient expenses, company could see profit growth slow and a possible 15% decline in share price. 

- Hedge Funds: Interview with Justin Abercrombie, Portfolio Manager, Schroders Global Value Extension Fund (picks: AAPL, AXA, BNP Paribas, Indo Tambangraya Megah, Legal & General, Vale; pans: Commonwealth Bank of Australia, TSLA, TWTR, Vallourec); Interview with Sarah Ketterer, Co-Founder & CEO, Causeway Capital Management, who is interested in finding companies with profitability and operating leverage (picks: Komatsu, International Consolidated Airlines Group, Schneider Electric); 

- European Trader: Positive on SHPG: Though shares have jumped since ABBV bid, there could be more upside to come, especially if another bidder emerges. 

- Asian Trader: Best performers in Asia in first six months of the year have been South and Southeast Asian markets, including India, Philippines, Indonesia, and Thailand; The biggest risk in Asia remains China, says Markus Rosgen of Citigroup, who likes Asian banks such as MTU; Benjamin Yeo at BCS likes Larsen & Toubro and Hon Hai Precision. 

- Emerging Markets: Value has started to emerge in Chinese property stocks, but it seems premature to jump into a group thats down 12% this year, though nimble investors could short stocks such as China Resources Land, Evergrande, and Country Garden. - Commodities: U.S. oil prices have trailed the West Texas Intermediate benchmarks gains and could retreat more quickly if crisis in Iraq continues. 

- Follow-Up: Headlines seem to suggest Africa is a scary place to invest, but the stock market there tells another story, and many of the countrys stocks are poised for growth (Positive on MTN Group, Shoprite Holdings, Safaricom, FM, AFK, NGE); Positive on NXST, SBGI: Companies are the biggest winners following Supreme Court ruling on Aereo, while large media stocks such as CBS, CMCSA, DIS, FOXA, GCI, and Tribune also stand to benefit. 

- CEO Spotlight: Profile of BAC chief Brian Moynihan, who has focused on cost-cutting, selling non-core assets, and sought ways to increase efficiency across operations. 

- Streetwise: Industrials seem to be benefiting from the pickup in U.S. economic growth, and could see a boost with the first quarter in the rearview mirror (Positive on LLL, CSX, PH).

Télégraph AbbVie scuppers Shire bid for rival

Shire had been lining up a $5bn (£2.9bn) financing package to acquire rare disease business NPS

AbbVie's takeover approach of Shire has scuppered the Irish drugmaker’s attempts to acquire a rival US pharmaceutical company, NPS Pharmaceuticals.

Days before AbbVie’s offer was made public Shire had been lining up a $5bn (£2.9bn) financing package to acquire rare disease business NPS.

However, AbbVie’s confirmation that it had made a £27bn approach for London-listed Shire kicked off a 28 -day offer period meaning the US bidder must make a firm, fully-financed bid by July 18, or walk away.

AbbVie’s initiation of an offer period firmly squeezed the brakes on Shire’s own takeover ambitions because the UK Takeover Code restricts target companies in offer period from acquiring assets which could be deemed as a “frustrating action”.

Shire is therefore unable to make any acquisitions, by which it could bulk itself up and defend its independence.

“Shire is unlike other companies in that it is historically very acquisitive, it is part of its business model”, one person familiar with the company said. “So to be hamstrung in its ability to follow its day-to-day business practice is very disruptive”.

If Shire is reluctant to be sold to AbbVie it could call an emergency meeting of shareholders to approve its own acquisition plan.

However, this would hinge upon Shire’s shareholders believing that a deal by the Dublin-domiciled business would be better than a takeover of Shire.

Flemming Ornskov, chief executive of Shire has been pragmatic about his defence of the business so far and said he would not stand in the way of a deal if a higher offer came from AbbVie.

(Barron's) Markets End Mixed, Bulls Get Uncomfortable

What about the current bull market? It’s been running for more than five years now, and that alone has some questioning how much longer it can go on. Don’t look for answers in the market’s performance this week. The S&P 500 dipped just 0.1% to 1,960.97, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.6% to 16,851.84. The Nasdaq Composite gained 0.7% to 4,397.93 and the small-company Russell 2000 ticked up 0.1% to 1,189.50. Make sense of that jumble.

Investech Research’s Jim Stack expresses his discomfort with the five-year bull market:

…with the market hitting new all-time highs almost daily, the majority of dark clouds have seemingly disappeared from the investment horizon. Yet this is when we tend to become most uncomfortable. Not bearish – just uncomfortable. It’s not that we disagree with the evidence – which supports a bullish outlook. We simply know that, historically, market tops are accompanied by maximum levels of bullish consensus. One can’t base their investment decisions solely on "sentiment" or "complacency" – but one also shouldn’t ignore such extremes when they start to appear.

Societe Generale’s Albert Edwards extols the life of a Bear:

I’ve long felt being an equity bear is more like a vocation, especially as I have now been underweight equities for 17½ years. Being an equity bear is about as popular as being an estate agent or indeed even worse – a politician. But I believe we remain trapped in a secular valuation bear market and the Ice Age theme will continue to dominate in the near term. The flip side of this is that I remain a bull of long government bonds. As my colleague Andrew Lapthorne points out, the nature of the beast is that I am wrong 90% of the time as equities outperform bonds, only to be correct in the long term as many years of equity outperformance are savagely unwound in a matter of months.

JPMorgan’s Arjun Mehra and team wrote think there could be some short-term pain ahead after the S&P 500 experienced a "key reversal:"

In general terms, a key reversal occurs when a security completely changes its recent pattern during the course of a trading day. Specifically, for a day to be classified as a key reversal day in an up-trending market, 2 things need to happen: 1) the security must trend higher and take out the previous all-time highs, and 3) the direction must then reverse with the closing tick falling below the previous day’s low price. A reversal day can also occur in a down-trending market, with the exact opposite direction in each step mentioned above.

We looked at price history for the S&P 500 since the beginning of 2000 and discovered that key reversal days in up-trending markets (like the one we are in the midst of currently) are rare and have only occurred in 5 total instances, with June 24, 2014, being the most recent occurrence. The data shows that the S&P 500 underperformed immediately following the triggering of each of these days. As such, we think it is prudent to buy short-dated puts/ put spreads on the index to hedge against any potential downside in the coming few days, particularly with implied volatility close to cycle lows.

(Barron's) Undervalued Oil Giant Chevron Could Rise 30%

Undervalued Oil Giant Chevron Could Rise 30% Years of investment in production should pay off in the coming quarters, rewarding investors who buy low.

Oil giant Chevron has spent the past few years investing in its future, which has created a powerful opportunity for investors. A capital-spending blitz has depressed the company's earnings in the short term, keeping a lid on the share price. Meanwhile, the payoff will be greater profits down the road to share with investors wise enough to get in now.

Chevron (ticker: CVX ) is poised for a resurgence of profits in late 2014 and beyond as it wraps up years of successful exploration and large project construction amid an environment of high oil prices.

"Chevron offers by far the best growth prospects in the integrated oil sector with visibility through 2020, and the stock is still reasonably valued, especially relative to Exxon," says Jefferies analyst Jason Gammel. "The dividend is very sustainable and capable of growing in the mid- to high-single digits on an annual basis." Shares yield 3.2%.

At 11.7 times forward earnings, Chevron is significantly cheaper than ExxonMobil ( XOM ) and ConocoPhillips ( COP ), which both trade well above 13 times forward, even as Gammel estimates Chevron's annual cumulative production growth rate as high as 5.5% through the end of the decade, well ahead of the 1% to 2% industry average.

Chevron's stock has been held back in part by concerns over its big capital spending program. However, investment in exploration will benefit shareholders for years to come, and two major Australian liquefied natural gas projects, Gorgon and Wheatstone, are set to come online in the next two years: At full capacity, Gorgon alone could generate around $1.30 in annual earnings. (Chevron earned $11.09 a share in 2013.)

Jim Kee, South Texas Money Management's chief economist, says that Chevron is showing "great discipline" in spending wisely while continually rewarding shareholders. Chevron is "reinvesting in projects that will increase the value of the company but depressing earnings in the short term — that creates an opportunity for investors to jump in and buy the stock, and now is the perfect time to do that."

Some investors may be hesitant to buy now, but Kee argues that "Most of its spending will start to generate cash flow over the next few years, and the market hasn't priced that in yet. So the return on investment will go up, the market will start to reward the stock, and people who own the stock now will see a good 30% return." After a dip in 2014, Chevron is expected to return to mid-single-digit earnings-per-share growth in 2015 and earn $12.31 a share in 2016.

Moreover, while Chevron is expanding its natural gas production, it is still one of the "oiliest" majors: More of its earnings come from oil, which is more stable in price than natural gas — and its contracts mean that much of its LNG output is also tied to oil prices.

"We believe that Chevron is the most levered of the majors to higher oil prices…and oil is well supported, not just because of [recent instability] in Iraq, but as the actual physical balances of oil are very tight, inventories are very low," says Brian Bradshaw, portfolio manager of the BP Capital TwinLine Energy Fund, which counts Chevron among its top five holdings.

Bradshaw also notes that Chevron is one of the few majors aggressively investing in its business at the moment, with the rest of the group focusing on shareholder returns. With both dividends and buybacks, Chevron's total yield is just under 5%, while Exxon is closer to 6%.

Yet receiving a slightly smaller yield now allows Chevron shareholders to get the better-earning company in the long run. "The money they are spending now shows up in better production volumes and better margins in the years to come -- because of rising oil prices and cost controls -- so you end up with a company that [will ultimately] have higher dividends and stock buybacks, and Chevron's return on capital is already one of the best in the business," says Bradshaw.

To be sure, investors have to be comfortable with execution risk before buying the stock. Despite its seasoned management team and disciplined approach, Chevron has to watch costs carefully -- a difficult task with big projects like those in Australia. And as with any major integrated oil company, some of its assets are in riskier regions, in geopolitical terms. Finally, a crash in oil prices would also hurt the stock.

Yet any missteps are likely to be minor and short term, and with large, valuable assets in stable places such as the U.S. and Australia, Chevron isn't as exposed to international politics as some peers. Nor does the company draw any of its earnings from Iraq, which, along with other factors, is working to keep oil prices up.

Chevron  (CVX)

Stock Price: $130.92 52-Week High: $133.57 52-Week Low: $109.27 Market Value: $250 billion Est. 2014 EPS:$10.86 Fwd P/E: 11.7 Est. Long-Term EPS Growth:*5.50% Est. ('14/'13) EPS Growth: -2% Revenue (trailing 12 months):$208 billion Dividend Yield: 3.30% CEO: John Watson Headquarters:San Ramon, Calif. * Based on analyst estimates looking ahead three to five years. Sources:  Barron's, Thomson Reuters, Yahoo Finance

>>> Weekly Market Update: Summer Doldrums Arrive Early

Weekly Market Update: Summer Doldrums Arrive Early

- The second quarter still has one session left to go on Monday, however there was very little quarter-end repositioning driving trading volumes or volatility any higher this week. The final reading of first quarter US GDP came in much lower at -2.9%, however markets ignored this well-trodden story to concentrate on more recent, more positive numbers: the May Markit manufacturing PMI reading pushed out to 61, its highest level since May 2010; May new home sales surged 18.6% from April to an adjusted rate of 504K, the highest level since 2008; and May core PCE at 1.5%. Similarly positive data were seen out of China and Japan, while European indicators held steady at a low level of growth and inflation. The S&P500 made an all-time intraday high on Tuesday and then edged lower, while European bourses moved lower all week. For the week, the DJIA dropped 0.6%, the S&P500 fell 0.1% and the Nasdaq gained 0.7.

- The annualized May core PCE, the Fed's preferred measure of inflation, grew 1.5%, right in line with consensus expectations. This is the highest rate of growth in the measure since February 2013, and the overall reaction to the data among analysts and the Fed was very measured this week. The headline PCE was a bit higher, at 1.8%. Fed dove Bullard said PCE inflation would not get above 2% until 2015 but warned that the Fed is much closer to achieving its goals and the economy is doing much better than most people realize. While Bullard also reiterated his view that rate hikes would not be appropriate until the first quarter of 2015, Bullard's firm tone helped force equity markets lower on Thursday morning. Fed hawk Lacker said the recent inflation data was not just "noise" and that inflation measures would head higher this year. Lacker also warned it would be a mistake to allow inflation to get out of control before the Fed started raising rates. Recall that last week, Fed Chair Yellen said "...recent readings on, for example, the CPI index have been a bit on the high side, but I think the data we're seeing is noisy."

- The final revision of the weather-impacted US first quarter GDP missed expectations and sank much lower, to -2.9% from the -1.0% preliminary figure. This was the fastest rate of decline since the Great Recession and the largest drop recorded since the end of World War II that wasn't part of an official recession. However, nearly every component of the final reading was very modestly adjusted with the exception of imports and exports (which more or less cancelled each other out), and the services PCE, which was revised to +1.5% from +4.3% in the preliminary data, driven entirely by updated estimates of health care spending. The feds had assumed medical services would be up sharply due to expanded access under the ACA, but the latest quarterly services survey showed few signs of acceleration. After the data, Barclays adjusted its call to +2.9% from +4% in its prior view, to reflect a more modest rebound in Q2 consumption growth. TD Ameritrade cut its Q2 GDP view to +3.0% from +3.6% prior.

- Oil prices spiked higher on Tuesday on reports the Obama administration had cleared the way for the first exports of US crude oil in 40 years. Federal officials informed two energy firms - Pioneer Natural Resources and Enterprise Products Partners - they can legally export ultra-light oil condensate, which is a product of shale drilling. The front-month WTI crude contract traded as high as $107.50 before the Commerce Department clarified that there had been no broad change in policy. Commerce said that the two companies were granted permission to export shale condensate only after it had been run through a distillation tower to become a petroleum product and only because of a large oversupply of condensate, clarifying that the move had no larger implications for crude exports. Nevertheless, refiners tanked on Wednesday, with Valero down 10% or so on the week.

- On Friday Ukraine signed the historic free-trade agreement with the European Union that has been at the heart of months of violence and upheaval in the country, drawing an immediate threat of "grave consequences" from Russia. Ukraine President Poroshenko declared a unilateral ceasefire for the week, however hostilities continued, with both sides exchanging fire on several occasions. The tentative ceasefire is expected to extend through Monday to allow of an attempt at peace talks. Western powers reiterated they stand ready to impose more sanctions if Russia fails to make a good faith effort de-escalate the tensions and return full control of Ukraine's border to the Kiev government.

- The US Supreme Court ruled against Barry Diller's Aereo streaming television service, calling it a broad violation of broadcaster copyrights. The sweeping and definitive ruling was split 6 to 3, and the majority opinion went out of its way to call out Aereo as the equivalent of a cable company, not merely an equipment provider. They also emphasized that the ruling does not endanger other technologies, including cloud computing technology. Mr. Diller said the ruling was the end of the road for Aereo, calling the ruling a big loss for consumers.

- In earnings, shares of Nike gained ground on impressive fourth quarter numbers, beating on the top and bottom line. Futures orders were up 11%, while even China - previously a soft spot - appears to have made a fully recovery from its inventory adjustment with a 4% rise in sales. Walgreen missed bottom-line expectations in its third quarter, but bevenue was up 6% y/y and met consensus views while Rx comps were up 6.3%. Walgreen also said it was considering reincorporating in Switzerland for tax reasons as part of its combination with Alliance Boots. Monsanto beat earnings expectations in its third quarter results and authorized a big new share buyback program. Note that earnings were down 5% y/y and revenue missed expectations, dragged lower by a 16% y/y decline in sales of genetically-engineered corn seeds. Homebuilders Lennar and KB Homes reported very strong quarterly results, with robust gains in new home sales and strong growth in backlogs.

- In M&A news, France's Alstom accepted General Electric's $13.5 billion offer to acquire the firm's power generation and grid businesses, with the additional caveat that GE enter three JVs with Alstom for grid infrastructure, renewable power equipment and nuclear power. The deal comes after the French government got an option to buy as much as 20% of Alstom from Bouygues following the closing of the deal, giving the government the guarantee it needed that Alstom will remain a French firm. Oracle reached a deal to acquire Micros Systems for $68/share in cash, in a total deal valued at $5.3B. This is the company's biggest buy since acquiring Sun Microsystems for $7.4 billion back in 2009. Midwest utilities Wisconsin Energy and Integrys Energy entered an all-stock merger valued at $9.1 billion.

- FX markets remained locked in tight ranges for yet another week as volatility declined even further. Analysts noted as long as US bond yields were in retreat and the US yield curve continued its bullish steepening, the greenback should stay offered, pushing volatility even lower and keeping the carry trade in play. Volatility in the EUR/USD pair matched all-time lows at 4.55%. GBP/USD saw a little profit-taking after failing to close above the pivotal 1.7050 weekly chart point. USD/JPY slid lower, dropping below its 200-day moving average to end the week around 101.34 largely due to US rates. Key support is at 100.70 and could ignite downside momentum if broken.

- China HSBC flash manufacturing PMI for June returned to expansionary territory for the first time in six months, signaling the "targeted mini-stimulus" measures orchestrated by policymakers are starting to gain some traction. The data showed an upward inflection in input prices and improvement in the employment component, although growth in new export orders slowed. HSBC chief China economist said he expects continued accommodative policy until the recovery is sustained. China Beige Book assessment of Q2 was more measured, indicating fewer companies had access to credit amid weakening investment environment. Shanghai Composite ended the week up 0.5%.

- Trading in Tokyo was decidedly more bearish as Nikkei225 fell 1.7%, weighed down by firmer Yen and even more fodder for the BOJ to stick to its guns on policy. May unemployment rate fell to a 17-year low of 3.5%, while job-to-applicant ratio hit a 22-year high of 1.09x. Inflation figures also maintained their upward trend, with core Japan-wide CPI reaching its highest point since 1982. Japan PM Abe formally unveiled his "3rd arrow" plans early in the week, announcing plans to cut the corporate tax rate from current 35%+ to below 30% over the next few years, enact portfolio management reforms for pension funds, and revise the tax system with intent on promoting the number of women in the workforce.

>>> US Close Dow+0,03% S&P+0,19% Nasdaq+0,43%

Closing Market Summary: Stocks End Mixed Week on Higher Note

The major averages ended the Friday session on a higher note thanks to a final-hour rally that sent the indices to session highs. The S&P 500 added 0.2%, narrowing its weekly loss to 0.1%, while the Nasdaq Composite settled higher by 0.4% to bring its weekly advance to 0.7%.

In general, equity indices respected narrow ranges until the last hour of action with the S&P 500 confined to a five-point range. The subdued activity was also reflected by below-average intraday trading volume, which received a big boost at the close from rebalancing of the Russell indices. Thanks to the final surge, almost 1.5 billion shares changed hands at the NYSE.

Only three sectors—energy, health care, and materials—ended in the red with materials (-0.4%) registering the largest decline. The smallest cyclical sector by weight (just 3.5% of the S&P 500) slumped out of the gate amid noteworthy weakness in the shares of DuPont (DD 65.44, -2.26). The Dow component tumbled 3.3% after lowering its Q1 and full-year guidance. Steelmakers also weighed with Market Vectors Steel ETF (SLX 47.44, -0.35) sliding 0.7%.

Meanwhile, the other commodity-related sector—energy (-0.1%)—also pressured the broader market, but erased the bulk of its loss in the late afternoon to end the week higher by 4.9%. For its part, crude oil settled little changed at $105.76/bbl.

Also of note, the health care sector (-0.2%) lagged throughout the session amid weakness in biotechnology. The iShares Nasdaq Biotechnology ETF (IBB 256.73, +0.35) was down as much as 0.9% intraday, but settled on its high.

The underperformance of the biotech space did not stop the Nasdaq from outpacing the benchmark index. Large cap components contributed to the outperformance with Apple (AAPL 91.98, +1.08) and Microsoft (MSFT 42.25, +0.53) advancing close to 1.2% apiece. High-beta chipmakers struggled to keep up as the PHLX Semiconductor Index added 0.2%.

In addition to technology, three other influential sectors—consumer discretionary (+0.3%), financials (+0.2%), and industrials (+0.3%)—contributed to the afternoon spike to highs. Apparel retailers underpinned the discretionary space after Finish Line (FINL 29.56, +0.41) and Nike (NKE 77.68, +0.82) reported better than expected results.

Treasuries ended little changed with the 10-yr yield at 2.53%.

Economic data was limited to the Michigan Consumer Sentiment survey for June, which increased to 82.5 in its final reading for June. That was up from a preliminary report of 81.2 and up from 81.9 in May. The consensus expected the Index to increase to 81.7. The preliminary June report initially showed a decline in confidence. That didn't jive with the big improvements in equity prices and employment conditions. However, the final reading brought the Consumer Sentiment Index in-line with the Conference Board's Consumer Confidence Index, which increased to 85.2 in June from 82.2 in May.

(Challenges) Successor to Maurice Lévy at Publicis?

Link to Google Translation : {http://bit.ly/1jrRHoi}
Link to French Original Article :{http://bit.ly/1lUVRZN}

The merger with Omnicom was intended to address the issue of governance of world's third largest advertising. His failure recovery debate.


The show must go on. Internationally Advertising Festival in Cannes, June 20, Maurice Lévy had chosen for its traditional seminar to debate the digital economy with Sy Lau, CEO of Chinese Internet juggernaut Tencent Online Media Group. The opportunity to bounce back after the sudden abandonment of merger negotiations with Omnicom, May 9

This merger of the American world number two, with the French, number three, have yet created the world leader in communications, to the British WPP. While to adjust the delicate question of the succession of Maurice Lévy, 72, whose mandate runs until 31 December 2015: after thirty months of a dual direction, the successor to Marcel Bleustein-Blanchet, founder of Publicis would have ended his career on a high note as non-executive chairman of the World leader, while operating income was John Wren, Omnicom his counterpart.

"It was a nice dream, but not a necessity," said strength with good humor the boss of Publicis shareholders came in large numbers at the General Meeting of May 28 "In comex where Maurice Levy told us the project, in the heart of July, he asked us to continue business as usual, says Arthur Sadoun, president of Publicis Worldwide. For us and our teams, negotiations had no impact, nor the non-fusion . "These uncertainties have not prevented the forties to take competition recruits choice, as David Hunt, the digital agency AKQA (WPP Group), China, or Dawn Winchester, R / GA (Interpublic) , USA.

Yet unease remains. "Strategically, it was a good approximation summarizes Dembik Christopher, an analyst at Saxo Bank. The real question now Publicis is that of the succession, this is where the failure of the merger. "And the markets are particularly attentive to these issues. Course objectives Havas were lowered when David Jones went to leave the controls to Yannick Bolloré, 34 years young heir still inexperienced.

Legacy

Dolphins, Maurice Lévy has yet had. Christophe Lambert and David Kenny did not have the patience to wait. Still in office, Jean-Yves Naouri, it is therefore given according to some, still in the race according to others. The legacy would it be too heavy? The old computer has built a machine to identify the best margins in the industry with highly centralized "shared services" that lower costs: this is the famous "model Publicis' Maurice Levy wanted to transpose across the merged group to produce 2 billion euros in annual cash flow. Visionary, he also initiated the transition to digital in 2006, with the acquisition of the U.S. agency Digitas, followed by several others. Result: in 2013, the group achieved 38% of its worldwide turnover in the digital, which is number one in the United States and around the world, according to Advertising Age.

"Today is priceless for Publicis," praised Elisabeth Badinter, President of the Supervisory Board, the General Meeting of Shareholders. Recalling that Publicis has known only two leaders since 1926 - Marcel Bleustein-Blanchet and Maurice Lévy since 1987 -, daughter of the founder identified the difficulty of succession: "This stability in governance is certainly part of the specificities of Publicis. "Will it be possible to continue after the departure of Maurice Lévy?

Two weeks after the general meeting in his office overlooking the Champs-Elysées, the CEO agrees to return to the film of the last ten months. The proposed merger? "The result of the meeting, summarizes Maurice Lévy With John Wren, we looked at how to create something masterful.." In the Timeline, it did not budge: "It was a merger of equals, with slightly shareholder of Publicis, a true 50/50 for directors, a two-thirds majority for any strategic decision, and well shared between teams from two groups responsibilities. "When it became clear that" Omnicom wanted to monopolize all positions ", it was decided to stop spending. "I thought it was better to take the risk of being criticized, rather than endanger the future of the company."

And now? "What helps Publicis is to be presented to analysts its five-year strategy in April 2013 in London, says Bruno Herring, Oddo. Objective was to achieve 18 to 20% margin in 2018 against 15.9% in 2013, increasing shared services and pursuing acquisitions in big data. " The Group therefore has no plan B to find ... Just to come back to plan A! "We are working to put this strategy day after the failed merger, says Maurice Lévy We advance in digital The real question for us is:..? How to recreate a new difference" Another wave of acquisitions is already announced.

To an extension?

As for the estate ... "The situation is quite unique, recognizes Maurice Lévy. When I succeeded Marcel Bleustein-Blanchet, I was in charge of some businesses. But we were present in France and in some other countries, which now represent only 27% of our turnover! It's complicated, and find model may be different. Any idea of cloning should be banned. "Maybe Does it take a blend of complementary skills to face the new time. Arthur Sadoun and Jean-Michel Etienne, CFO whose maintenance would have been the ultimate stumbling block in negotiations with Omnicom, have a role to play.

"More form than ever," according to his entourage, Maurice Lévy ensures that there will not be a candidate to succeed him in December 2015. But the supervisory board could ask him to stay a little longer, the age limit has been postponed 75 years -. expiring February 18, he has said, to the General Assembly 2018 Whatever happens, "I will continue to help as much as I can, even to a non-operational position." Way of saying it will give time to time.

(Challenges) What Andrea Bonomi wants to Club Med

Link to Google Translation : {http://bit.ly/1pH9T0H}
Link to French Original Article :{http://bit.ly/1mD5cGg}

What Andrea Bonomi wants to Club Med

EXCLUSIVE. The Italian businessman has unveiled its strategy for Club Med. Challenges reveals the main points. He has until June 30 to say whether it intends to launch a takeover bid.

Tension mounts at Club Med then Andrea Bonomi has until Monday, June 30, 18 am to file its proposed against-OPA. An injunction AMF it challenges in court. A maneuver, Henri Giscard d'Estaing readying weapons internally and externally. Group CEO had talks with Laurent Fabius to raise awareness on this issue comes, according to him, the French touch and influence of France. The Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Development knows the company, formerly developed by Gilbert Trigano, since his two son worked there as Gentiles Organizers (GO). HGE, as it is called internally, has also spoken with Fleur Pellerin , Secretary of State in charge of tourism, and Jean-Pierre Jouyet , secretary general of the Elysee and former head of the Caisse des Dépôts, a historical shareholder of Club Med.

The direction of Club Med, coupled with tandem Franco-Chinese Ardian-Fosun also seeking support internally. Their bid is on stand-by for a year after the use of minority who dispute the amount and fairness of the offer: she values ​​the Club Med to € 558 million. Thursday, June 26, the FO section of the company, 47% majority, has published two tracts, one of which challenges the government and stakeholders on their takeover projects, one being described as friendly, the other hostile. It is particularly concerned "a restructuring that would have no purpose other than the pursuit of improving the profitability of shareholders, whether buyers or transferees."

Andrea Bonomi is?

Few people know precisely motivations Andrea Bonomi. This Italian businessman of 48 years was born in New York and was educated at the French Lycée in London. He became known with the takeover of Aston Martin and Ducati. Today, through its Luxembourg funds Strategic Holdings and Investindustrial this financial holds a little over 10% stake in Club Med, making it the largest shareholder.

Furthermore the amount of the tender launched by Ardian-Fosun, it also disagrees with the strategy of moving upmarket Henri Giscard d'Estaing and its small presence in Europe. First time, in January 2013, it would knock on the door to enter capital management and the board. An end of inadmissibility was opposite him.

For several weeks, Andrea Bonomi is active on all fronts. To accompany him, he took consulting services communication Stéphane Fouks, VP 's Havas , who has had to manage several sensitive issues at the national level as the acquisition of Alstom by General Electric or Swiss conversion Lafarge after his marriage with Holcim. The investor, surrounded by a battalion of lawyers and bankers, flipping through the figures of the data room made available by the Board of Directors of Club Med. To supplement this information, he would have sent incognito his younger brother, Carlo Umberto, make a trip to Club Med Kamarina in Sicily, one of the largest villages in the group.

His strategic vision differs from that established by Henri Giscard d'Estaing for a decade. In particular because it does not allow the Club Med generate returns able to finance its development. To give some leeway to the company, Andrea Bonomi reportedly plans to open eight villages in the next two years. But at the same time it would reduce overheads in France 50%, which concerned 650 employees at headquarters. Finally, the businessman would put an end to the "all inclusive", the all-inclusive, which is part of the DNA of Club Med . Payment for consumption being more profitable. On Monday, he will lay his cards.