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Dutch-British consumer goods company Unilever [AMS:UNA] could acquire smaller rivals Colgate-Palmolive [NYSE:CL] or Reckitt Benckiser [LON:RB], unnamed analysts told Dutch daily Het Financiële Dagblad.

Acquisitions would be a way to become unattractive for hostile takeovers, the analysts suggested. Unilever is looking to adapt to such a strategy in order to fend off the next takeover attempt from Kraft Heinz [NASDAQ: KHC]. Heinz offered to buy the company last month, but the deal was ultimately called off.

However, the analysts added that Colgate and Reckitt Benckiser were very efficient companies and that there would little margin for profit.

Unilever is also expected to look out for smaller acquisitions, the report added. Perfume, hair dye and sun screen are buys that would be interesting for the company because these products are not yet in its portfolio, it added.

Eon, the German utility, posted a net loss of €16bn for 2016, more than double the loss for 2015, on the back of writedowns on power generation and higher provisions for Germany’s nuclear clean-up.

But it said that its adjusted earnings before interest and taxes were €3.1bn, which was at the upper end of its guidance range.

The company said it would propose a dividend of 21 cents per share for 2016 and 30 cents per share in 2017.

It said adjusted ebit would be between €2.8bn and €3.1bn.

Last year Eon split into two, pooling its coal and gas-fired power stations, energy trading and gas production units into a separate company, called Uniper, which debuted on the Frankfurt stock exchange in September.

The move, one of the largest corporate shake-ups in German post-war industrial history, came in response to the crisis in the German power sector caused by the Energiewende, the country’s radical shift away from nuclear power and fossil fuels. Abundant wind and solar energy has squeezed the conventional power generated by utilities like Eon and RWE out of the market and suppressed the wholesale price of electricity, making many gas and coal-fired power stations uneconomic.

Eon said its €16bn net loss for 2016 was mainly attributable to a loss from discontinued operations, reflecting impairment charges on Uniper operations.

Eon also was hit by the German government’s decision last year to make the utilities pay €23.6bn towards the cost of disposing and storing the country’s nuclear waste — much more than they had provisioned for. Eon will be responsible for about €10bn of that total.

Macro :

- Dollar Gains, Stocks Slip Before Fed as Oil Slumps: Markets Wrap

- Fed Interest-Rate Hike May End Up Helping Treasuries: Macro View

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*Alimak Raised to Buy at SEB Equities, PT SEK133

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>>> Down

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*Salvatore Ferragamo Cut to Neutral at MainFirst, PT EU28.50

>>> Initiation

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*Credit Agricole Rated New Neutral at MainFirst, PT EU12.50

*ING Rated New Outperform at MainFirst, PT EU16

*KBC Rated New Neutral at MainFirst, PT EU62

*Natixis Rated New Neutral at MainFirst, PT EU5.40

*SocGen Rated New Neutral at MainFirst, PT EU49

German generic pharma group’s supervisory board meets on Wednesday

Two private equity consortiums have submitted fresh €3.7bn takeover offers to acquire German drugmaker Stada, setting the stage for a crucial supervisory board meeting at the generic maker of Viagra on Wednesday.

A group made up of Advent International and Permira and one comprised of Bain Capital and Cinven each made formal €58-a-share offers for the German company this week, according to people close to the matter.

Both bids include a plan to cover Stada’s dividend payments, a commitment to create an investment agreement that lays out specific promises to the company’s workforce, and a growth strategy.

The investment agreement is intended to help the private equity bidders address the concerns of some members of Stada’s supervisory board.

One person involved in the process said the bids also include statements that said the competing consortiums would consider raising their offers if they could conduct final due diligence.

Stada’s supervisory board, which recently took on Evercore Partners as advisers, is to meet on Wednesday to review the proposals. The board could decide to proceed to the final round of the auction in that meeting.

Stada declined to comment.

The intense battle among private equity players to secure the group highlights the increasingly competitive landscape for buyout firms trying to secure attractive assets in a world that has an ever smaller crop of palatable targets.

The auction process kicked off last month after Cinven submitted a non-binding bid. That was followed by offers from Bain and Advent.

To strengthen their offers, Bain and Cinven teamed up, while Advent joined forces with Permira.

A deal would be one of the larger public-to-private transactions by buyout firms, which have struggled to compete with strategic bidders in public auctions.

The private equity firms could not immediately be reached for comment.

Anglo-Dutch group moves closer to revealing options after strategic review

Unilever is considering returning cash to shareholders, making medium-sized acquisitions and more aggressive cost cuts as part of a sweeping review, the results of which it will announce next month.

The review follows what Paul Polman, Unilever chief executive, has privately described as the “near-death” experience of Kraft Heinz’s $143bn takeover bid, which could have seen the Anglo-Dutch company swallowed up by the US group, backed by private equity firm 3G Capital and Warren Buffett.

Unilever had a quick reprieve — the most feared consolidator in the food industry withdrew its offer within 48 hours. But Graeme Pitkethly, Unilever’s finance director, told an industry conference a week after the approach: “This has certainly been a trigger moment for Unilever. And we will not waste it.”

Division heads at the consumer goods group’s businesses, which range from Hellmann’s mayonnaise and Magnum ice cream to Sunsilk shampoo and Axe deodorants, have been told to review their operations with the aim of boosting shareholder returns.

Unilever’s share price now sits above the £39.50 a share proposed by Kraft Heinz, adding to the pressure on Mr Polman to satisfy investor expectations.

Mr Polman has been vocal in emphasising that companies should be run for long-term returns and with more than investors in mind. But, according to one large shareholder supportive of Unilever, he has recognised that “the pendulum needs to swing a little bit back to shareholder returns”.

However, the radical step of demerging all its foods operations — which include Lipton tea and Knorr stock cubes and account for 43 per cent of sales — from its home and personal care business is unlikely, according to two people close to the company.

Unilever declined to comment on the review, but in the past it has argued that it needs both sides of its business to give it critical mass in emerging markets, which account for 58 per cent of revenues.

Nevertheless, it is accelerating efforts to dispose of its Flora margarine division and some analysts say that Kraft Heinz could be a potential buyer. Unilever’s spreads business has high operating profit margins of 20 per cent and could fetch up to €7bn, according to analysts at RBC Capital Markets.

Unilever has identified two key areas for reform — its low debt levels and the need for deeper cost cuts in low-growth businesses to boost operating profit margins.

Though a point of strength, Unilever’s low debt left it exposed to Kraft Heinz. The US company planned to raise debt against Unilever’s strong balance sheet to help fund its purchase.

One senior industry executive says: “It’s ironic because it’s like saying someone is too healthy. The fact is that if you have a strong balance sheet today, that makes you vulnerable to 3G. So you need to make yourself a bit sick — but not too much.”

Unilever is contemplating raising its net debt to 2.5 or 3 times earnings before interest, tax and depreciation, from 1 times now, according to the two people close to the group.

At 2.5 times, Unilever would have €29bn to spend by 2020, according to Andrew Wood, analyst at Bernstein.

Some of this is likely to be returned to shareholders. In the past, Mr Polman has dismissed share buybacks as not making “any sense” but Unilever is now “open to ideas”, says one investor.

“If they wanted to spice up the returns, they could do a special dividend in a year or two and announce it now,” says another.

Unilever is also considering larger-scale acquisitions than the bolt-ons it has made in recent years. It has spent €4bn on acquiring companies such as Dollar Shave Club and Dermalogica skincare — but these are small in the context of Unilever’s €53bn sales last year, none of which added more than 3 per cent to overall revenues, estimates Eva Quiroga-Thiele, analyst at Deutsche Bank.

Reckitt Benckiser, which is buying baby milk maker Mead Johnson for $18bn could opt to sell its home care business, which Mr Wood estimates is worth between £6bn and £8bn and would be a good fit for Unilever.

–Unilever has already identified €1bn of savings through a three-year cost-cutting programme introduced last year.

Mr Pitkethly, who is seen by some analysts as the driving force behind the plan, is thought to be pushing for deeper cuts in slow-growth food businesses.

The cuts could boost operating profit margins by more than the recently promised 0.8 percentage points increase, though Unilever is sensitive to the need to reinvest in its brands.

Unilever is also examining a simplification of its dual listing in London and Amsterdam, a structure that causes confusion especially for US investors.

“This is a company that’s never had any external pressure. So they are taking it seriously,” says another large investor. “Certainly, we expect something meaningful when we get to early April and they tell us the results of their review.”

Diesel: the report that accuses Renault

For years, has Renault changed the performance of its engines so that they comply with emission standards ... only during the homologation tests? The question arises, in a lancinante way, reading a document overwhelming the French car manufacturer. This is a report drawn up by the Directorate-General for Competition, Consumer Affairs and Fraud Prevention (DGCCRF), which Libération was able to consult. The Constable de Bercy wrote these 39 pages in November 2016, after several weeks of investigation. It highlights Renault's emissions behavior and is harsh: "Renault SAS deceived consumers about the controls carried out, and in particular the regulatory control of the approval of pollutant emissions [...]. The company used a strategy aimed at distorting the results of antipollution tests. " This piece is now the cornerstone of the judicial inquiry opened by the Paris prosecutor's office on 12 January and entrusted to three examining magistrates Of the Tribunal de Grande Instance, Paris, specializing in attacks on public health.

Test series

Back in the fall of 2015. On the other side of the Atlantic, a laboratory of the University of West Virginia revealed the existence of software embedded clandestinely on some Volkswagen vehicles, triggering the scandal of the dieselgate. It allows to temporarily limit the emission of polluting gases, until the model receives its homologation. The software then deactivates and the car "releases", releasing nitrous oxide responsible for respiratory diseases up to 40 times more NO x in the atmosphere . The US Environmental Protection Agency then decides to sue the German manufacturer.

In Paris, Segolene Royal does not remain dangling arms. The Ministry of the Environment is launching a series of tests on vehicles marketed in France, to see if they are engaged in similar practices. Bercy, who does not want to remain out of play, mandates his armed arm, the DGCCRF, with a specific mission: to look for possible deception. On January 7, a squad of investigators landed without warning at the Renault headquarters in Boulogne-Billancourt (Hauts-de-Seine) and at two research centers, for a search. The officials left with boxes of documents, Prelude to future hearings.

Obviously, the operation is shaking the direction of Renault. At the same time at the Ministry of the Environment, a series of meetings were held between car manufacturers and environmental associations, at the request of Ségolène Royal. Coordinator of the health-environment network at France Nature Environment (FNE), Charlotte Lepitre participated: "Before this operation, the discussions were quite extensive and we got answers to our questions. Afterwards, our interlocutors were much more defensive and our questions remained unanswered. Was there a causal relationship? " A few months later, the DGCCRF minutes provided the answer.

"Fraudulent arrangement"

The document highlights significant discrepancies between the performance of certain Renault engines at the time of their laboratory homologation and their use under actual conditions. That is to say by any driver on the roads of France. In this operation, the Renault Captur (Euro 6 standard) and the Clio IV (Euro 5) take off the pompom. The first exceeds the regulatory threshold for carbon dioxide emissions of 377% and the second of 305%! The investigators' comments are without appeal: "These results make it possible to suspect the installation of a fraudulent device which specifically modifies the operation of the engine, in order to reduce its NO x emissions under specific conditions of the homologation test, so that Emissions are within regulatory limits. " To a lesser extent, the Kadjar and Talisman models also emerge from the nails. Renault is suspected of "calibrating" its engines only to be allowed to circulate. This technique has a name: "preconditioning".

As the accused was in principle doubtful, the differences in emissions of engine pollutants could have been accidental. But several letters seized in the computers of Renault suggest the opposite. A mail exchanged on 25 November 2015 between the Director of Legal Affairs, the Director of Communications and the Head of Institutional Relations concludes: "This depollution system is therefore very quickly inoperative on the road but it works during the tests." For the investigators of the DGCCRF, the burdens are heavy since the analyzes in their possession "attest to the implementation of strategies fraudulent for more than seven years".

The calculation made by Bercy gives dizziness. Nearly 900,000 vehicles could have been marketed thanks to these questionable approvals, which represents 16.8 billion turnover. The icing on the cake: Unlike other large groups that are visibly more exposed to judicial risks, Renault has not put in place delegations of authority to its directors-general. It is therefore the CEO, Carlos Ghosn himself, who finds himself in the front line in the search for responsibilities. As for the Renault house, it faces a 10% fine of its annual turnover, ie 3.5 billion euros.

On February 10, when the results of Renault were presented , Libération asked its CEO whether it planned to provision in the group accounts in the future an amount to face a possible financial penalty. "For what reasons ? We do not know what is being blamed, " Carlos Ghosn said. On Tuesday, Libération again asked the management of the company to respond to the complaints of the DGCCRF. "Renault recalls that none of its services responsible for testing or marketing has infringed the complex technical and legal rules, European or national, concerning the approval of vehicles," the automaker replied by email.

"Deception"

The report of the DGCCRF was sent to the public prosecutor's office in Paris at the end of December. A few days later, a judicial investigation was opened for "deceit on the substantial qualities and the checks carried out". Significance of the file, it is not one but three investigating judges who have been appointed. They immediately reported to the Central Office for Environmental and Public Health (OCLAESP), a 70-gendarme unit that investigated the effects of the Mediator, PIP breast prostheses, and is currently working On Volkswagen engines. He will resume the investigation since the start, "a charge and a defense," according to an official close to the file. New searches, but also hearings of Renault officials are to be expected. Accustomed to the "road shows" that lead them to defend the performance of their company in the financial centers of the world, Renault executives will now have to prepare themselves for a long judicial journey.

Se dirige-t-on vers un Renaultgate ? La justice suspecte le constructeur d’avoir trompé ses clients sur le véritable niveau de pollution de ses moteurs diesels. «Libération» a pu consulter le document à l’origine de cette enquête, qui pourrait coûter cher au groupe et à son PDG, Carlos Ghosn.

Diesel : le rapport qui accuse Renault

Renault a-t-il, pendant des années, modifié les performances de ses moteurs afin qu’ils respectent les normes antipollution… uniquement pendant les tests d’homologation ? La question se pose, de manière lancinante, à la lecture d’un document accablant le constructeur automobile français. Il s’agit d’un procès-verbal (PV) rédigé par la Direction générale de la concurrence, de la consommation et de la répression des fraudes (DGCCRF), que Libération a pu consulter. Le gendarme de Bercy a rédigé ces 39 pages en novembre 2016, après plusieurs semaines d’enquête. Il met en lumière le comportement de Renault en matière d’émissions polluantes et se montre sévère : «Renault SAS a trompé les consommateurs sur les contrôles effectués et notamment le contrôle réglementaire de l’homologation sur les émissions de polluants […]. La société a utilisé une stratégie ayant pour objectif de fausser les résultats des tests antipollution.» Cette pièce est aujourd’hui la clé de voûte de l’enquête judiciaire ouverte par le parquet de Paris le 12 janvier et confiée à trois juges d’instruction du tribunal de grande instance de Paris, spécialisés dans les atteintes à la santé publique.

Série de tests

Retour à l’automne 2015. De l’autre côté de l’Atlantique, un laboratoire de l’université de Virginie-Occidentale révèle l’existence d’un logiciel embarqué clandestinement sur certains véhicules Volkswagen, déclenchant le scandale du «dieselgate». Il permet de limiter momentanément l’émission de gaz polluants, le temps que le modèle reçoive son homologation. Le logiciel se désactive ensuite et la voiture se «lâche», libérant dans l’atmosphère jusqu’à 40 fois plus de NOx, un oxyde d’azote responsable de maladies respiratoires. L’Agence américaine de protection de l’environnement décide alors de poursuivre le constructeur allemand.

A Paris, Ségolène Royal ne reste pas les bras ballants. Le ministère de l’Environnement lance une série de tests sur les véhicules commercialisés en France, histoire de voir s’ils s’adonnent à des pratiques similaires. Bercy, qui ne veut pas rester hors jeu, mandate son bras armé, la DGCCRF, avec une mission bien précise : chercher d’éventuels faits de tromperie. Le 7 janvier, une escouade d’enquêteurs débarque, sans prévenir, au siège social de Renault à Boulogne-Billancourt (Hauts-de-Seine) et dans deux centres de recherche, pour une perquisition.Les fonctionnaires repartent avec des cartons de documents, prélude à de futures auditions.

Visiblement, l’opération ébranle la direction de Renault. A la même période au ministère de l’Environnement, a lieu une série de réunions entre des constructeurs automobiles et des associations de défense de l’environnement, sur l’injonction de Ségolène Royal. Coordinatrice du réseau santé-environnement au sein de France Nature Environnement (FNE), Charlotte Lepitre y participe : «Avant cette opération, les discussions étaient assez étendues et nous obtenions des réponses à nos questions. Après, nos interlocuteurs étaient beaucoup plus sur la défensive et nos questions sont demeurées sans réponse. Y a-t-il eu une relation de cause à effet ?» Quelques mois plus tard, le PV de la DGCCRF apporte la réponse.

«Dispositif frauduleux»

Le document fait ressortir des écarts importants entre les performances de certains moteurs Renault au moment de leur homologation en laboratoire et leur utilisation en conditions réelles. C’est-à-dire par n’importe quel conducteur sur les routes de France. Dans cette opération vérité, le Renault Captur (norme Euro 6) et la Clio IV (Euro 5) décrochent le pompon. Le premier dépasse le seuil réglementaire d’émission de dioxyde de carbone de 377 % et la deuxième de 305 % ! Le commentaire des enquêteurs est sans appel : «Ces résultats permettent de soupçonner l’installation d’un dispositif frauduleux qui modifie spécifiquement le fonctionnement du moteur, pour en réduire les émissions de NOx dans des conditions spécifiques du test d’homologation, afin que les émissions respectent les limites réglementaires.» Dans une moindre mesure, les modèles Kadjar et Talisman sortent, eux aussi, des clous. Renault est soupçonné de «calibrer» ses moteurs uniquement pour qu’ils soient autorisés à circuler. Cette technique a un nom : le «préconditionnement».

Le doute bénéficiant en principe à l’accusé, les différences d’émissions de polluants des moteurs auraient pu relever du hasard. Mais plusieurs courriers saisis dans les ordinateurs de Renault suggèrent le contraire. Un mail échangé le 25 novembre 2015 entre la directrice des affaires juridiques, la directrice de la communication et le responsable des relations institutionnelles se conclut ainsi : «Ce système de dépollution est donc très vite inopérant sur la route mais il fonctionne pendant les tests.» Pour les enquêteurs de la DGCCRF, les charges sont lourdes puisque les analyses en leur possession «attestent de la mise en œuvre de stratégies frauduleuses depuis plus de sept ans».

Le calcul effectué par Bercy donne le vertige. Près de 900 000 véhicules auraient pu être commercialisés grâce à ces homologations contestables, ce qui représente 16,8 milliards de chiffre d’affaires. Cerise sur le gâteau : à la différence d’autres grands groupes visiblement plus rompus aux risques judiciaires, Renault n’a pas mis en place de délégations de pouvoirs à ses directeurs généraux. C’est donc le PDG, Carlos Ghosn lui-même, qui se retrouve en première ligne dans la recherche des responsabilités. Quant à la maison Renault, elle risque une amende de 10 % de son chiffre d’affaires annuel, soit 3,5 milliards d’euros.

Le 10 février, lors de la présentation des résultats de Renault, Libération a demandé à son PDG s’il comptait provisionner à l’avenir dans les comptes du groupe une somme pour faire face à une éventuelle sanction financière. «Pour quelles raisons ? Nous ne savons pas ce qui nous est reproché», avait répondu Carlos Ghosn. Ce mardi, Libération a de nouveau demandé à la direction de l’entreprise de réagir aux mises en cause de la DGCCRF. «Renault rappelle qu’aucun de ses services en charge des tests ou de la commercialisation n’a enfreint les règles techniques et juridiques complexes, européennes ou nationales, relatives à l’homologation des véhicules», nous a répondu par mail le constructeur automobile.

«Tromperie»

Le rapport de la DGCCRF a été transmis au parquet de Paris fin décembre. Quelques jours plus tard, une information judiciaire a été ouverte pour «tromperie sur les qualités substantielles et les contrôles effectués». Signe de l’importance du dossier, ce n’est pas un mais trois juges d’instruction qui ont été nommés. Ils ont immédiatement saisi l’Office central de lutte contre les atteintes à l’environnement et à la santé publique (OCLAESP), un service de 70 gendarmes ayant enquêté sur les effets du Mediator, des prothèses mammaires PIP, et qui travaille en ce moment sur les moteurs Volkswagen. Il va reprendre l’enquête depuis le départ, «à charge et à décharge», selon un fonctionnaire très près du dossier. De nouvelles perquisitions, mais aussi des auditions des responsables de Renault sont à attendre. Habitués aux «road shows» qui les amènent à défendre les performances de leur entreprise sur les places financières du monde entier, les dirigeants de Renault vont maintenant devoir se préparer à un long chemin judiciaire.