A credit card is used at a store in Calgary.Todd Korol/The Globe and Mail
DEAL OF THE DAY
CPI Card Group raises $150-million (U.S.) in IPO
CPI Card Group, a Canadian-owned U.S. credit card maker, has raised $150-million (U.S.) in an initial public offering, about half the amount it had originally targeted, the firm said on Thursday in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
The shares are expected to start trading on the Toronto Stock Exchange and the Nasdaq on Friday, a day later than previously planned.
Fifteen million shares were sold at $10, below the $12-to-$14 range it had been hoping for.
The first signs of trouble for the IPO surfaced on Wednesday, when CPI cut back the amount of money it planned to raise to $200-million from $300-million.
"Due to heightened volatility in the market, CPI's IPO did not price as close to the offer as originally planned on Wednesday," chief executive officer Steve Montross said in an e-mailed statement. Full story
MERGERS AND ACQUISITIONS
Encana sells Colorado property to CPPIB-led group for $900-million
Encana Corp. has struck a deal to sell a Colorado property to a group led by the investment arm of the Canada Pension Plan for $900-million (U.S.).
The Canada Pension Plan Investment Board will hold 95 per cent of a new concern and Broe Group the remaining 5 per cent. Full story
The thinking behind CPPIB's logistics bet
Online shopping and steady returns led the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board to its latest European investment.
As online buying gains popularity and the flow of goods to Asia continues to swell with consumer demand, CPPIB is partnering with two other investors to build new transport hubs in Britain that store and help move goods. Full story
TransCanada, Brookfield units buy power plants from Talen Energy
Power producer Talen Energy Corp said it would sell three plants in Pennsylvania for $1.51-billion (U.S.) to meet regulatory requirements related to its formation in 2014.
Talen said on Thursday that it would sell a natural-gas-fired plant to TransCanada Corp for $654-million and two hydroelectric projects to Brookfield Renewable Energy Partners LP for $860-million. Full story
Blackstone to Buy BioMed Realty Trust for $4.8-billion
Blackstone Group LP will acquire BioMed Realty Trust in a $4.8-billion (U.S.) cash deal, adding more office buildings and laboratory-capable facilities to its real estate portfolio.
The $23.75-a-share price tag represents a 10-per-cent premium over Wednesday's closing price. Full story
FINANCINGS
Hubba raises $11-million in first round of financing
One of Toronto's hottest early-stage startups, Hubba, has attracted top-tier talent and big-time customers and boasts big-league ambitions. Now, it has raised its first major round of financing – and is already eyeing an even bigger raise within the next 18 months. Full story
INSIGHT
Drug pricing a 'red herring' for Concordia and Valeant shareholders
The U.S. drug pricing storm that The New York Times broke wide open a few weeks ago that precipitated dramatic declines in the shares of Canadian pharmaceuticals companies, Valeant Pharmaceuticals International Inc. and Concordia Healthcare Corp., is a "red herring."
That's according to Canaccord Genuity Corp. analyst Neil Maruoka who argues that a bigger problem, and one that should concern shareholders a lot more, is the "rapid widening of credit spreads" and increased borrowing costs that many of the pharma companies are now facing.
"Over the past few years since the Fed began loosening in 2008, we have witnessed an unprecedented deluge of consolidation and asset acquisition in the spec pharma space, fuelled largely by cheap debt. Leverage has swelled as the market rewarded the most active companies, pushing specialty pharma multiples higher. However, we believe that we have reached a turning point with decelerating [mergers and acquisitions] and multiple compression as the cost of financing the incremental dollar of M&A growth moves higher," Mr. Maruoka wrote in a recent note to clients.
Concordia, he says, is more vulnerable than Valeant in a higher-cost-of-borrowing environment, because it is more leveraged and its revenue growth prospects aren't as promising. Mr. Maruoka slashed his price target on the Oakville, Ont.-based firm to $55 (U.S.) from $80.
Got any Bay Street buzz? If you have any story suggestions for the Daily Deal Roundup, e-mail us at deals@globeandmail.com or nmcgee@globeandmail.com.
Niall McGee