>>> SoundCloud eyed by Deezer, Apple, Spotify, Google, PE firms

SoundCloud eyed by Deezer, Apple, Spotify, Google, PE firms

Deezer, the French music streaming service, is considering a bid for German music streaming platform SoundCloud, the New York Post reported. Deezer is understood to be the most eager of several parties interested in acquiring SoundCloud and is serious in its intentions, one senior music source quoted in the report said.
Deezer is owned by Access Industries, a vehicle of Len Blavatnik, who is also the owner of New York City-based Warner Music Group, the report said. Cupertino, California-based computing giant Apple [Nasdaq:AAPL] is also said to be interested, although company insiders were keen to talk down any deal last week, the item reported. Google [Nasdaq:GOOGL] of Mountain View, California, was named as another prospective bidder eyeing SoundCloud.
Industry sources cited in the piece said several private equity companies are also looking at SoundCloud. The report suggested that PE firm KKR might be a potential bidder as the investor recently lost out on a deal to invest in the internet radio service Pandora.
UK-based rival Spotify is also believed to be in current discussions on a potential bid for SoundCloud, people with close links to talks said. Spotify was reported to have entered advanced negotiations on the acquisition of SoundCloud in September last year, although TechCrunch reported in December that the deal had died.
SoundCloud was valued at around USD 700m last year when it received a USD 70m investment from microblogging platform Twitter [NYSE:TWTR], the New York Post report said. SoundCloud took on USD 70m of debt financing earlier this year, the report noted.
SoundCloud did not wish to comment on the matter, the item reported.

Full Article NY Post : Music streamers express interest in SoundCloud deal

A new phase of consolidation is about to hit streaming music services.

The latest player to go on the block is SoundCloud, a destination second in size only to YouTube — and popular with youngsters trying to get their music noticed.

Based in Berlin, SoundCloud has 175 million users and is being eyed by a host of players, The Post has learned.

SoundCloud investors last year had hoped for a $1 billion valuation but it may now have to settle for $700 million or less, according to a report earlier this year from Recode.

Deezer, the France-based streamer owned by Len Blavatnik’s Access Industries, is one of the suitors, sources said.

Blavatnik also owns Warner Music Group.


Spotify was in advanced talks to acquire the venture last September, the FT reported, but there’s been nothing but crickets about those talks since then.

Apple, always mentioned as a possible acquirer when consolidation of music companies is at hand, is again said to be in the mix as it eyes a free ad-supported bolt-on to its 20 million paid Apple Music, sources said.

Apple’s Jimmy Iovine had previously been interested in SoundCloud but some Cupertino insiders last week were talking down the prospect, calling it “fake news.”

Of course, a number of private equity players are circling, industry sources said.

While it’s unclear who among the buyout bigwigs in serious pursuit and who is casually kicking the tires, KKR is interested in the space — having come close to making a $250 million investment in Pandora weeks ago.

Spotify, which is the leader in paid streaming music with 50 million paid subscribers, is also said to be discussing a bid, according to sources close to the talks, while Google was said to be circling, as well.

SoundCloud is being viewed as a key chess piece in the game to build a rival to the Big Four: Spotify, Apple, Amazon and YouTube.

Of all the suitors, Deezer is said to be the most interested.

“Deezer is making a serious run,” said a senior music source. “There will be a lot of consolidation, if you are Deezer or Spotify. SoundCloud’s massive user base — one that is melting as it grapples with a shrinking pile of cash — lets you convert,” into a much bigger player, said a source familiar with talks.

Only a few months ago, SoundCloud was struggling to get suitors to the table. In March, it secured $70 million in debt financing.

Last year, Jack Dorsey’s Twitter made a $70 million investment in the service, valuing it at $700 million.

The company has been losing key staff, including Stephen Bryan, the chief content officer.

SoundCloud declined to comment.

>>> Takeda Pharmaceutical could acquire in US, Europe, Japan, emerging nations

Takeda Pharmaceutical could acquire in US, Europe, Japan, emerging nations (translated)
04 JUL 2017
Takeda Pharmaceutical [TYO:4502], the Japanese pharmaceutical group, is seeking acquisitions, Frankfurter Allgemeinereported.
Takeda Chief, Christophe Weber told the German daily he wants to grow in the US, Europe and Japan, while emerging nations also have long-term potential. Acquisitions are possible to fill the group's pipeline said Weber, noting that the company is very innovative and brings new medicines to the market very quickly.
Weber said there is always a maximum price he is prepared to pay as he wants to preserve the group's investment grade rating.
External co-operations are more important than buys, Weber stated.
Takeda achieved a turnover of around EUR 13bn in the 2016/17 financial year, the report stated.

FT : Bain and Cinven prepare for fresh €4.1bn Stada bid

Bain and Cinven prepare for fresh €4.1bn Stada bid
Private equity groups court hedge funds ahead of new offer for German drugmaker

Bain Capital and Cinven are preparing to submit a fresh €4.1bn takeover for Stada, the German generic drugmaker, as soon as this week, resuscitating what would be Europe’s largest buyout in four years just days after their previous offer collapsed.

The private equity groups have been in contact with Stada and BaFin, the German regulator, to secure a waiver from a one-year standstill that they were subject to after they failed to receive sufficient backing from Stada shareholders, according to multiple people close to the process.

Bain and Cinven have yet to receive clearance from BaFin and Stada but those approvals may come in the next 48 hours, allowing them to make a new offer valuing the maker of generic Viagra at the same €66 per share price, some of these people said.

The bidders have also been in touch with a number of hedge funds who hold Stada shares. They have received irrevocable acceptances from some of those investors who did not tender their shares in the previous offer period, one person added.

Bain and Cinven received acceptances from 65.52 per cent of shareholders for their original offer, just 2 per cent short of their 67.5 per cent target. The bid’s failure was attributed to several factors, including the role of a handful of hedge funds who refused to tender their shares in the hope of forcing the bidders to pay slightly more.

The private equity duo failed last week to receive sufficient backing from Stada shareholders for their offer, even though it represented a 49 per cent premium to Stada’s undisturbed share price and had the backing of the target company’s board and management.

Both Stada and BaFin must agree to waive a one-year standstill that went into effect when the original offer collapsed. To do so, Stada must evaluate a few factors including whether the new bid is competitive and whether there is a lower execution risk to it.

To satisfy the latter condition, Bain and Cinven are planning to drop the acceptance threshold from 67.5 per cent in the previous offer period to 65 per cent or lower.

The offer could also include an accelerated tender period, allowing the bidders to pass the threshold before Stada’s annual general meeting, which is scheduled for August 30.

Stada’s shares closed at €62.50 on Monday, with investors expecting a new bid for the company as being likely to come.

Stada and Cinven declined to comment. Bain did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

FT : Sainsbury’s Q1 sales beat expectations

It was a strong first quarter for J Sainsbury as sales beat expectations, with UK grocers rising a wave of stronger revenue fuelled by increasing prices – despite intense competition in the sector.

Like-for-like sales, excluding fuel, rose 2.3 per cent in the first quarter, better than the 1.9 per cent anticipated by analysts polled by Bloomberg and well ahead of the 0.3 per cent rise reported for the preceding quarter.

Total sales, also excluding fuel, rose 2.7 per cent in the sixteen weeks to July 1, up from 0.7 per cent in the preceding quarter.

Chief executive Mike Coupe said the group had “delivered a strong performance”. He added:

The market is competitive and we continue to manage cost price pressures closely. Our strategy is delivering and we are well placed to navigate the external environment.
Sales at British supermarkets rose at their fastest rate in five years over the past three months, according to data released by Kantar Worldpanel last week. However, all of the main grocers lost market share compared with last year due to competition from German value chains Aldi and Lidl, with the growth in sales stemming from increased prices. The strong performance for cheaper, non-branded goods in the data also suggested British consumers are increasingly feeling price pressures in their pocket.

Earlier this month it was reported that J Sainsbury has entered into exclusive discussions to acquire the convenience store operator Nisa for £130m. No comment on this was made in the statement.

Growth in Sainsbury’s sales was strongest in the clothing category, which rose 7.2 per cent in the quarter. Grocery sales rose 3 per cent.

>>> What to look at today - 4th of July 2017 {US}

Dow +0.61% S&P +0.23% NAsdaq -0.49% Russell +0.80%
US Market closed on a mixed note ahead of 4th of July. top-weighted sector was a clear laggard while other decliners—consumer discretionary (-0.2%), consumer staples (-0.1%), and utilities (-0.5%)—ended closer to their flat lines. US After Hours, Erroneous prices of Nasdaq stocks, including some of the world’s biggest technology companies. prices were distributed by third-party data providers after Wall Street closed early for the July 4 break.
Asian Market are mixed - ASX is leading regional gains on a rebound in recently underperforming banks (rate backup), miners (iron ore rebound) and energy (oil rally). Retailers have also surged after the latest Aussie retail sales figures shot past expectations.Chinese equities are trading lower. The PBoC refrained from open market operations for an eighth day, leaving liquidity unchanged as CNY250bn of reverse repos is due to mature this week. Small-caps are again under pressure in Hong Kong with the HKEX Growth Enterprise Market now down 16% over the past month. Yen weakness has failed to translate into Nikkei strength though the major autos have strengthened following positive sales updates. Earlier, the latest BoJ Tankan showed a rise in near-term inflation expectations. Korean equities and the won barely reacted to the latest North Korean missile test.

Nikkei -0.37% Hang Seng -1.59% CSI -0.79% Shanghai -0.43%

Eur$ 1.1346 CNH 6.8014 JPY 112.99 GBP 1.2936 CHF 0.9641 RUB 59.3562 WTI $ 46.83 -0.51%

S&P -0.02% EuroStoxx -0.43% Dax -0.39% FTSE -0.36% SMI -0.29%

Macro :
- French Cos.’ M&A Activity Rises 44% in 1H to $128B: Le Figaro
- French Market Regulator Sees Risk of ‘Sharp Market Correction’
- Nasdaq Data Show Exaggerated Movements in Post-Market Trading
- Fed: Yellen Hospitalized in London Over Weekend, Released Monday
- UniCredit Sees Stronger Europe Stocks, Slower UST Yield Rise

Keep an eye on :
- AAPL US : Apple to Sell as Many as 85m New iPhones This Year: KGI’s Kuo
- AKZA NA : Elliott exploring possible new legal challenge to Akzo Nobel - FD.nl
- AMUN FP : Amundi Pioneer Asset Management Created in U.S. Merger
- BAM US : Brookfield Bids BRL9/Unit for 16% Renova Energia Stake: Reuters
- BLT LN : BHP Switching to Natural Gas at Giant Chile Copper Mine: DF
- CRG IM : Carige Board Approves Capital Increase of as Much as EU500M
- CLN VX : Activist Hedge Fund Corvex Targets Clariant Amid Huntsman Deal
- CLN VX : Clariant Should Pursue Other Options Than Huntsman: Activists
- CRBN NA : Corbion Was Looked at, Not Approached by Parties: Telegraaf
- CSGN VX : Credit Suisse Transfers Roughly 100 IT Jobs to India’s HCL: T-A
- DBK GY : Deutsche Bank Said to Ask EU700M for Spanish Unit: Expansion
- DBG FP : Derichebourg Majority Shareholder CFER to Sell 2% Stake
- EDF FP : EDF Cut to Reduce, Shares Have ‘Run Too Far Too Soon’: HSBC
- EDP PL : Gas Natural Said to Have Approached EDP for Merger: Reuters
- GAS SM : Gas Natural Said to Have Approached EDP for Merger: Reuters
- ILD FP : Arcep: Paris Court Confirms 2015 Ruling on Free, Orange Dispute
- INGA NA : ING Unit No Longer Judges Traders on Hard Sales Targets: FD Link
- ISAT LN : Inmarsat Slides on Report Rivals Seek In-Flight Wi-Fi Injunction
- ORA FP : Arcep: Paris Court Confirms 2015 Ruling on Free, Orange Dispute
- SAZ GY : Bain, Cinven Set to Make New Stada Bid as Soon as This Week: FT
- SRP FP : Conforama Buys 17% of Showroomprive for EU27/Shr Or EU158M (Closed @ 23.27 +16%vs clolse)
- TSLA US : Tesla Sales Fall Short of Analyst Expectations as Model 3 Nears
- TLW LN : Tullow Oil agrees to sell 30% stake in Namibian oil block to ONGC Videsh
- UCB BB : UCB Says Chief Scientific Officer Ismail Kola to Leave Dec. 31
- UCG IM :UniCredit Completes Disposal of Pioneer to Amundi
- DG FP : Vinci: Wins Grand Paris Line 15 EU156M Contract Excl VAT

>>> Europe : Brokers Upgrades & Downgrades - 4th of July 2017 {US}

>>> Up
*UniCredit Raised to Overweight at JPMorgan, PT EU21

>>> Down
*Baloise Cut to Reduce at HSBC, PT CHF136
*EDF Cut to Reduce at HSBC, PT EU8.40
*Gurit Holding Cut to Hold at Baader-Helvea, PT CHF1,100
*HSBC Cut to Hold at Berenberg
*Huber + Suhner Cut to Hold at Baader-Helvea, PT CHF71
*Tryg Cut to Hold at SEB Equities

>>> Initiation
*Betsson New Hold at Berenberg, PT SEK75
*FF Group New Buy at Mirabaud Securities, PT EU27.50
*Kindred New Sell at Berenberg, PT SEK80
*Statoil New Hold at Kepler Cheuvreux, PT NOK140
*VAT New Buy at Baader-Helvea, PT CHF140

>>> Call

>>> STADA confirms Bain/Cinven mulling to apply for exemption from one-year excl

STADA confirms Bain/Cinven mulling to apply for exemption from one-year exclusion period for renewed offer submission
04 JUL 2017
STADA Arzneimittel AG [ETR:SAZ] confirms that Nidda Healthcare Holding AG, the acquiring company of Bain Capital and Cinven, gave notice to be considering to submit an application to the German Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (BaFin) for an exemption from the one-year exclusion period to make a renewed voluntary public takeover offer under section 26(2) of the German Securities Acquisition and Takeover Act (WpÜG).
STADA is currently assessing whether the company would give its consent to the exemption from the exclusion period and will keep both the capital market and the public updated on further progress in this regard, in line with the applicable legal requirements.

>>> Elliott exploring possible new legal challenge to Akzo Nobel - report (trans

Elliott exploring possible new legal challenge to Akzo Nobel - report (translated)
04 JUL 2017
Akzo Nobel's [AMS.AKZA] activist shareholder Elliott Advisors is exploring a possible re-inititation of legal action against the Dutch paints and chemical business, Het Financieele Dagblad reported, citing unnamed sources.
Elliott is currently sounding out other shareholders of Akzo Nobel to see if they would want to support such action, the item added.
The activist shareholder is primarily interested in the confidence expressed in Akzo's board pertaining to its growth agenda. In addition, it indicated it may be interested in launching another legal case against Akzo Nobel.
Last May, the Amsterdam Enterprise Court threw out Elliott's request for an extraordinary shareholder meeting, after a series of bid by Akzo's US-based peer PPG [PPG.NYSE]. Elliott could again ask for another similar meeting.
In addition, the Enterprise Court still has to decide on an investigation requested by Elliott into Akzo Nobel's handling of PPG's bid, the report noted.