A Bay Street sign, a symbol of Canada's economic markets and where main financial institutions are located, is seen in Toronto in this file photo.Mark Blinch/Reuters
Why Hydro One is eyeing U.S. takeovers to fuel expansion
Smart CEOs don't surprise the market with deals. They take the time to sell investors on a growth strategy long before they announce a takeover. Hydro One Ltd. chief executive officer Mayo Schmidt knows this. Story (Andrew Willis)
Oil price volatility driven by 'tourist traders' using incomplete data: report
We've entered a "new era in the oil market," where price volitility is driven by traders with limited knowledge of the oil industry and a reliance on incomplete data, according to a report published this week by RBC Capital Markets. Story (Mark Rendell)
CPPIB's energy asset hunt turns to the United States
CPPIB's energy asset hunt turns to the United States Canada Pension Plan Investment Board is on the hunt for unloved energy assets as it seeks to build out its natural resources investment prowess in the United States. Story (Jacqueline Nelson and Jeff Lewis)
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DAILY DEALS
Sycamore Partners said on Wednesday it would acquire U.S. office supplies chain Staples Inc for $6.9-billion, a rare bet by a private equity firm this year in the U.S. retail sector, which has been roiled by the popularity of internet shopping. Story
Blue Apron Holdings Inc sharply lowered the expected price range for its initial public offering on Wednesday, as Amazon.com's $13.7-billion deal to buy Whole Foods Market Inc weighed on prospects for the meal-kit industry. Story
Shutterstock Inc. agreed to acquire Toronto-based Flashstock Technologies Inc. for $65-million. Flashstock's platform allows brands to request custom content from the company's global network of freelancers. Story (Betakit) Here is the story from two years ago about its seed round and high-profile investors.
ON THE MOVE
Gino Scapillati of PricewaterhouseCoopers is joining national business law firm Bennett Jones SLP at their Toronto office as its vice-chairman of strategy and innovation. Story (Joyita Sengupta)
FROM THE ANALYSTS
Maher Yaghi, analyst at Desjardins Securities, said a higher bid for Sandvine Corp. is still likely.
On Tuesday, Sandvine said it has received another offer from Francisco Partners to buy the company for $4.15 per share, which was higher than the previous offer of $3.80 per share from Vector Capital.
"A bidding war for Sandvine could continue in to the $4.50 range," the analyst wrote in a research note.
Vector has five days now to match the new offer and Sandvine has a 42-day "go-shop" period that ends on July 7.
The analyst ran a leveraged-buy-out model on Sandvine and believes that at $4.15 the buyer can still generate a 19-per-cent internal rate of return using a six-year holding period and a sale at ten times free cash flow. Given that the new buyer operates in the same industry, the analyst added ten-per-cent cost synergies, bringing the IRR to 26 per cent.
"We see no reason to sell the stock before the go-shop period ends," the analyst said, "unless it appreciates above $4.50, which is equivalent to a ~20 per cent IRR with 10 per cent cost synergies."
ELSEWHERE IN FINANCE
Toronto-Dominion Bank, Bank of Montreal and a majority of the large U.S. banks passed the second part of the Federal Reserve's annual stress tests, giving them the green light to buy back shares, pay out dividends and make acquisitions. Story (Rachelle Younglai)