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The campaign increases the pressure on non-executive Chairman Norbert Winkeljohann, who has faced calls from large shareholders for the swift replacement of Chief Executive Werner Baumann, who engineered Bayer's troubled Monsanto takeover. The approaches come after Ubben's activist investment fund Inclusive Capital Partners said last month it had bought a 0.83% stake in Bayer. David Herro, deputy chairman of Harris Associates, told Reuters in brief emailed comments that Ubben had contacted him to discuss Bayer. A spokesperson said Bayer was always open to a constructive dialogue with shareholders and declined to comment further. Investors who have publicly called for a swift CEO change hold at least a combined 6.7% in Bayer, according to Refinitiv data.

[1/2] A trader works at the Frankfurt stock exchange in Frankfurt, Germany, February 22, 2022. REUTERS/Timm Reichert/File PhotoBERLIN/LONDON, Jan 27 (Reuters) - German web hosting firm IONOS is targeting a market capitalisation of up to 3.15 billion euros ($3.42 billion) in Europe's first major initial public offering (IPO) since sports car maker Porsche last September. Subject to regulatory approval of the IPO prospectus, the offer is expected to run from Jan. 30 to Feb. 7. IPO investors are typically offered a discount to a peer group in compensation for the risk of buying a new stock. Montabaur-based IONOS offers web hosting services and cloud applications to consumers and SMEs in countries including the United States, Germany, Britain, France, Spain and Poland.

FRANKFURT, Jan 24 (Reuters) - Czech Republic-based private investment firm McWin said on Tuesday it had bought a majority stake in Germany's L'Osteria in a deal that values the Italian-themed restaurant chain at around 400 million euros ($434 million). The move is aimed at driving the chain's growth across Europe, with McWin investing alongside L'Osteria founders, Klaus Rader and Friedemann Findeis, and management. Founded in 1999, L'Osteria serves Italian food in 157 restaurants across eight European countries. The investment follows an auction process and has been made via McWin Restaurant Fund (MRF), which totals 525 million euros and was launched in August 2022. McWin's financial adviser was KPMG, while L'Osteria and its shareholders were advised by Ferber & Co and Deutsche Bank (DBKGn.DE).

FRANKFURT, Jan 18 (Reuters) - Hellman & Friedman (H&F) is weighing options for its Italian cloud software maker TeamSystem, a business which could be valued at several billion euros, two people familiar with the matter told Reuters. Private equity investors are showing interest in TeamSystem, which may also attract sovereign wealth funds, they said. Hellman & Friedman acquired TeamSystem in 2016 and in 2021 moved the company from one of its funds to another. TeamSystem, which was founded in 1979, generated revenue of 545 million euros in 2021, while posting adjusted core earnings of around 235 million euros, according to company results on its website. While a decision on its valuation is still in flux, that could mean more than 6 billion euros including debt, the person said.

BERLIN/FRANKFURT, Jan 17 (Reuters) - United Internet (UTDI.DE) subsidiary Ionos said on Tuesday it would undertake a prime standard listing of its shares this quarter on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange, as the web hosting company readies for an initial public offering (IPO). The offered shares are expected to come from the holdings of the subsidiary's two existing shareholders, United Internet and Warburg Pincus, with United Internet to retain a majority stake after the IPO, Ionos said. United Internet shares were up 1.8% to 22.23 euros in early Frankfurt trading. The intention to float document did not provide details on the target issue price or the number of shares to be offered. A source familiar with the matter told Reuters last week that Ionos could achieve a valuation of 5 billion euros ($5.42 billion) in a stake sale.

A spokesperson for Deutsche Bahn declined to comment. Schenker, which provides logistics for sea, land and air freight, recently accounted for more than a third of Deutsche Bahn's sales. "The cash flows generated as part of a sale remain entirely within the Deutsche Bahn Group," the proposal document continues. Tough financing conditions could also lead to a decision not to sell, particularly if Deutsche Bahn is not satisfied with price, two sources said. Private equity would struggle to finance such an amount unless Deutsche Bahn decided to part with a minority stake instead, this source added.

FRANKFURT, Dec 7 (Reuters) - Private equity firm Advent International has finalised negotiations to purchase Saudi Basic Industries Corporation's (2010.SE) (SABIC) polycarbonate sheets business, two sources familiar with the situation told Reuters. The transaction is an add-on acquisition for Advent's existing portfolio business Roehm, with which it plans to develop a multi-polymer business, one of the sources said. An official announcement regarding the sale of the SABIC business, known as 'functional forms', is expected later on Wednesday, the same source added. Polycarbonate sheets are transparent thermoplastics that absorb minimal moisture, making them resistant to impact damage as well as water damage, flames and chemicals. DSM sold its engineering materials for 3.85 billion euros to Advent and German chemicals company Lanxess, announced late in May.

FRANKFURT, Nov 28 (Reuters) - U.S. buyout firm Carlyle Group (CG.O) has raised more than three billion euros ($3.12 billion) for a pan-European technology fund that is taking advantage of "pockets of life" in the economy, the co-heads of Carlyle Europe Technology Partners told Reuters. Carlyle aims to invest in approximately 20-30 companies through the new fund and in most cases will buy a majority stake. It will, however, reserve about 15% of the fund for growth equity transactions, Wand and Lasocki said. The fund will write equity cheques of up to 250 million euros, resulting in deals from between 100 million euros and 500 million euros in enterprise value, they said. Targeting B2B technology businesses in Europe, Carlyle will support portfolio firms with plans to become more international, for example breaking into the U.S. market.

FRANKFURT/HAMBURG, Nov 18 (Reuters) - German carmaker Volkswagen (VOWG_p.DE) is holding discussions with investors to join its battery division ahead of a possible partial initial public offering (IPO) of the subsidiary, two people familiar with the matter told Reuters. The idea is to bring in investors pre-IPO so Volkswagen can gauge how the division - named PowerCo - might be valued in a potential flotation, the sources said, adding that Volkswagen is working with advisers on a potential deal structure. Volkswagen has set aside 20 billion euros ($21 billion) for investment in its battery cell business, with the PowerCo unit managing its battery production and research from mining to recycling and projects including energy storage systems. Former Volkswagen CEO Herbert Diess floated the idea of a listing in May last year as a means of funding the carmaker's battery expansion plans. Volkswagen's US charging station network Electrify America, in which Siemens (SIEGn.DE) has invested a low three-digit million amount, could serve as a model for investor participation, the second source said.

At the same time, the pan-European STOXX 600 (.STOXX) was down 0.4% and an index of European oil and gas stocks was down 0.9%. (.SXEP)The IPO, which priced at the bottom of the expected price range, gave an initial valuation of 2.45 billion pounds ($2.83 billion) for the company. The London stock exchange has suffered the worst year on record for UK IPOs as market volatility persists amid the energy crisis and worsening economic forecasts. So far in 2022, global utility and energy IPOs valued at more than $100 million saw an average 19.9% return after one day, compared with negative returns for European utility and energy IPOs and UK IPOs across all sectors, according to Dealogic data. The last oil and gas producer to float on the main London stock exchange was eastern Mediterranean-focused Energean (ENOG.L) in 2018.

FRANKFURT/LONDON, Oct 20 (Reuters) - Morgan Stanley's infrastructure investment arm is weighing a sale of a 40% stake in German wind and solar power project developer PNE AG (PNEGn.DE) after being approached by potential suitors, three people familiar with the matter said. PNE confirmed on Thursday that Morgan Stanley and Photon Management intend to enter into open-ended preliminary talks with potential interested parties regarding Photon's stake in PNE. Photon, which is controlled by Morgan Stanley, is PNE's largest shareholder. Morgan Stanley Infrastructure Partners (MSIP) acquired the PNE stake following a failed takeover attempt in 2020. Buying the whole stake would trigger a mandatory takeover bid for all of PNE under German stock market rules.

FRANKFURT, Oct 20 (Reuters) - German sporting goods maker Adidas (ADSGn.DE) on Thursday cut its full-year guidance, citing weaker expectations for China, lower demand in major Western markets and one-off expenses related to its exit from the Russian market. The new outlook reflects one-off costs of around 500 million euros ($490 million) on its net income in 2022, Adidas added, saying these expenses were largely due to the company's decision to initiate the wind-down of its Russian business. Adidas's third-quarter sales increased 11% to 6.4 billion euros, but its net income for the full year is expected to reach 500 million euros, compared with its previous estimate of 1.3 billion euros. Currency-neutral sales in Greater China declined by a double-digit percentage due to continuing COVID-related restrictions, as well as significant inventory takebacks, the company said. With measures in place to protect the company's profitability, Adidas expects to generate a positive profit contribution of around 200 million euros in 2023.

Morgan Stanley Infrastructure Partners (MSIP) acquired the PNE stake following a failed takeover attempt in 2020. PNE, which has a project pipeline of more than 9 gigawatt and a generation portfolio worth 261 megawatt, has a current market capitalisation of 1.4 billion euros ($1.38 billion), valuing Morgan Stanley's stake at 560 million euros. Buying the whole stake would trigger a mandatory takeover bid for all of PNE under German stock market rules. A potential sale of MSIP's participation would result in chunky profits given the investment bank bought in at 4.00 euros per share and saw PNE's value grow to 18.50 euros. News about the potential stake comes in the wake of major renewables deal in recent weeks, including RWE's RWEG.DE $6.8 billion purchase of Con Edison's ED.N cleantech unit and BP's BP.L $4.1 billion takeover of U.S. biogas producer Archaea LFG.N.

Of course we had a gut feeling - the feedback we got from investors was very positive," Blume said, speaking next to a Porsche Taycan parked outside the Frankfurt stock exchange. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterPorsche AG's solid market debut came despite broadly weaker stock markets following red-hot German inflation data. In an interview with Reuters, Blume brushed aside concerns about his dual CEO role, saying it was not unusual to lead a brand and a company simultaneously. Looking forward, the sports car brand was focused on solving the last remaining software issues created by delays in the collaboration with Volkswagen's Cariad unit, setting out distinct strategies for Eastern and Western markets, Blume said. "I would not rule out that we would have technology that first arrives in the Chinese market and is then rolled out in other markets," he added.

Volkswagen priced Porsche AG shares at the top end of the indicated range and raised 19.5 billion euros from the flotation to fund the group's electrification drive. Porsche AG stock was trading up 3% from the issue price of 82.50 euros at 1035 GMT. That lifted Porsche AG's valuation to 77.4 billion euros, close to the market capitalisation of Volkswagen as a whole, which is worth around 80.1 billion euros, and puts it ahead of rivals like Ferrari (RACE.MI). Shares in Volkswagen and holding firm Porsche SE (PSHG_p.DE), which owns a blocking minority in Porsche AG, were down 4.6% and 8%, respectively, as investors switched across. Up to 113,875,000 preferred Porsche AG shares, carrying no voting rights, were sold in the initial public offering.

Volkswagen priced Porsche AG shares at the top end of the indicated range and raised 19.5 billion euros from the flotation to fund the group's electrification drive. Porsche AG stock was trading up 2.5% from the issue price of 82.50 euros at 0854 GMT. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterPorsche AG's solid start came despite broadly weaker stock markets as they braced for expected red-hot German inflation data. Shares in Volkswagen and holding firm Porsche SE (PSHG_p.DE), which owns a blocking minority in Porsche AG, were down 4.3% and 6.7%, respectively. Up to 113,875,000 preferred Porsche AG shares, carrying no voting rights, were sold in the initial public offering.

An employee of German car manufacturer Porsche mounts a steering wheel at the Porsche factory in Stuttgart-Zuffenhausen, Germany, February 19, 2019. REUTERS/Ralph Orlowski/FilesFRANKFURT, Sept 29 (Reuters) - Porsche AG shares will list on the stock market on Thursday after Volkswagen (VOWG_p.DE) priced shares at the top end of the announced range, a sign the luxury brand has lured buyers despite market turmoil. "Porsche was and is the pearl in the Volkswagen Group," Chris-Oliver Schickentanz, chief investment officer at fund manager Capitell, said. "The IPO has now made it very, very transparent what value the market brings to Porsche. Up to 113,875,000 preferred shares, carrying no voting rights, will be sold to investors over the course of the initial public offering.

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