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☆ Here are Thursday's biggest analyst calls: Apple, Tesla, Snowflake, Salesforce, Nio, Nvidia & more
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-02 | by ( Michael Bloom | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

JPMorgan downgrades Nio to neutral from overweight JPMorgan said it sees too many challenges after the Nio's earnings report on Wednesday. JPMorgan downgrades Dollar Tree to neutral from overweight JPMorgan said it sees too many macro headwinds for the discount retailer. Morgan Stanley upgrades Pinduoduo to overweight from equal weight Morgan Stanley said the ag-tech company is a "long-term growth story." Morgan Stanley reiterates Liberty Formula One as overweight Morgan Stanley said it's bullish on shares of the auto racing company. Morgan Stanley reiterates Tesla as overweight Morgan Stanley said competitors can't keep up after Tesla's investor day on Wednesday.

☆ Carlyle veteran Peter Clare to retire after more than three decades
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

NEW YORK, Feb 27 (Reuters) - Carlyle Group (CG.O) veteran and chief investment officer of its corporate private equity business, Peter Clare, will retire on April 30, weeks after the buyout firm named former Goldman Sachs Inc (GS.N) executive Harvey Schwartz as its chief executive. Clare, who joined Carlyle in 1992, has held several senior leadership roles in the unit. Carlyle also said on Monday Sandra Horbach and Brian Bernasek, currently co-heads of U.S. buyout and growth platform, will assume the role of co-heads of the Americas to oversee the firm's private equity business effective immediately. The appointments comes at a turbulent time for private equity firms as stubbornly high inflation, rising interest rates and geopolitical turmoil together crimped lucrative exits from investments. Earlier this month, Carlyle reported a steep 52% slide in its fourth-quarter distributable earnings as the private equity firm cashed out on fewer investments as dealmaking slowed.

☆ Private equity firm TPG's Q4 earnings drop 26% on lower asset sales
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-15 | by ( Chibuike Oguh | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

NEW YORK, Feb 15 (Reuters) - TPG Inc (TPG.O) said on Wednesday that its fourth-quarter distributable earnings fell 26% year-on-year as it cashed out fewer investments in its private equity, growth, impact and real estate portfolios. TPG said its net profit from asset sales fell to $95 million in the fourth quarter, down 62% from the $251 million posted a year ago. TPG said its private equity funds appreciated 2.2% in the fourth quarter, its growth funds and impact funds were flat and its real estate funds fell 1.5%. The private equity funds of Blackstone, Carlyle and Apollo appreciated by 3.8%, 1% and 5.4%, respectively, while KKR's private equity funds were flat. TPG ended the fourth quarter with $135 billion in assets under management.

☆ Starboard nominates directors to the board at Rogers. Here’s how the firm could boost margins
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-11 | by ( Kenneth Squire | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

Activist Commentary: Starboard Value is a very successful activist investor and has extensive experience helping companies focus on operational efficiency and margin improvement. On Dec. 15, 2022 , Starboard delivered a letter to the company nominating four directors for election to the board at the 2023 Annual Meeting. Both sides seem to share the same views regarding margin improvement, and there is a new CEO who Starboard likely supports. Having Starboard representation on the board would help management stay focused and get the support it needs. While Starboard is not advocating for any strategic transaction, the firm is an economic animal with fiduciary duties.

But unlike ICBC and its peers, Ant neither took deposits, nor piled risky loans onto its balance sheet. Free from the red tape that binds regular banks, the loans facilitated by Ant ballooned. Digital offerings accounted for half of overall consumer loans in China, Fitch Ratings calculated in 2021. Ant is set to become a licensed financial holding company, putting it under the close watch of China's main banking regulator. Beijing wants Chinese consumers to consume, so is likely to indulge controlled growth of consumer credit.

☆ Carlyle in talks to buy health tech firm Cotiviti for $15 bln - source
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-07 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Feb 7 (Reuters) - Carlyle Group Inc (CG.O) is in talks to buy private healthcare technology firm Cotiviti Inc from Veritas Capital for up to $15 billion, including debt, a person familiar with the matter said. The private equity firm is looking to partner with another investment firm to pull off the deal, and is also in talks with direct lenders to arrange $5.5 billion of debt financing, according to the person. If the arrangement goes through, that would be one of the largest ever direct loans, or non-bank buyout loans arranged in the private credit market, according to Bloomberg News, which first reported on the talks. Atlanta-based Cotiviti provides payment accuracy and analytics services to health insurers and other healthcare companies. Carlyle, Veritas and Cotiviti did not immediately respond to Reuters requests for comments.

☆ Carlyle's new boss will be virtuoso second fiddle
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-06 | by ( Jonathan Guilford | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

That’s the best way of interpreting the private equity firm’s appointment of former Goldman Sachs (GS.N) banker Harvey Schwartz on Monday. He never quite made it to the CEO job at Goldman, though served in a number of high-level roles like chief financial officer and chief operating officer. They felt that the ousted Lee, who pushed hard to diversify Carlyle’s business, hadn’t adequately consulted them on big moves, according to Reuters. The firm’s co-founder Bill Conway, also one of Carlyle’s two co-chairmen, has been filling the role on an interim basis. Schwartz previously held various senior roles including chief financial officer and chief operating officer at investment bank Goldman Sachs, which he left in 2018.

☆ Carlyle names former Goldman executive Schwartz as CEO
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Feb 6 - Private equity firm Carlyle Group Inc (CG.O) on Monday appointed former Goldman Sachs Inc (GS.N) executive Harvey Schwartz as chief executive officer, effective Feb. 15. The Wall Street veteran will replace co-founder and interim CEO Bill Conway, who will remain co-chairman of the board, Carlyle said. Schwartz retired from Goldman Sachs (GS.N) in 2018 after a 20 year-career at the investment banking giant. Prior to that, he was the bank's chief financial officer and was once considered a frontrunner to replace former CEO Lloyd Blankfein. "We would view the conclusion of this (CEO) search as a positive," Jefferies analysts wrote in a note.

☆ Carlyle hires ex-Goldman executive Harvey Schwartz as next CEO
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-05 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

Feb 5 (Reuters) - Carlyle Group (CG.O) has hired Harvey Schwartz as its next chief executive officer, a person familiar with the matter told Reuters on Sunday. Reporting by Chibuike Oguh and Lavanya Ahire in Bengaluru; editing by Diane CraftOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ RSA Security explores $2 bln-plus sale of Archer -sources
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-18 | by ( Milana Vinn | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Clearlake Capital, another private equity firm, invested in RSA the following year. Last year, RSA sold a majority stake in its events business, RSA Conference, to private equity firm Crosspoint Capital Partners for an undisclosed amount. Archer, headquartered in Bedford, Massachusetts, is a governance, risk and compliance software platform with over 15,000 users globally. RSA's other business divisions include identity and access management platform SecureID and threat detection and response software platform NetWitness. Archer is not the only risk management software vendor up for sale in the United States.

☆ Carlyle buys majority stake in India's VLCC for $300 mln - sources
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-10 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

BENGALURU, Jan 10 (Reuters) - Private-equity firm Carlyle Group (CG.O) has acquired a majority stake in Indian beauty care and wellness solutions provider VLCC for around $300 million, two sources told Reuters on Tuesday. The equity for the transaction will come from funds managed and advised by entities affiliated with Carlyle Asia Partners, Carlyle said in a statement, without specifying a deal value. "In a crowded market, having a distinct value proposition with high product efficacy and an established brand is very valuable, and that's what VLCC has," Jain added. Founders Vandana Luthra and Mukesh Luthra will continue to hold a significant stake in the company, Carlyle said, without sharing further details. In December, the parent of Indian personal care products startup Mamaearth filedfor an initial public offering.

☆ Carlyle Group buys majority stake in India's VLCC
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-10 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

BENGALURU, Jan 10 (Reuters) - Private-equity firm Carlyle Group (CG.O) said on Tuesday it acquired a majority stake in Indian beauty care and wellness solutions provider VLCC. The equity for the transaction will come from funds managed and advised by entities affiliated with Carlyle Asia Partners, Carlyle said in a statement, without disclosing any financial terms. VLCC founders Vandana Luthra and Mukesh Luthra will continue to hold a significant stake in the company, Carlyle said, without sharing further details. Carlyle has invested more than $5.5 billion in over 40 transactions in India as of Sept. 30, 2022, the company said. In November last year, a unit of Indian oil-to-chemicals conglomerate Reliance Industries (RELI.NS) picked a majority stake in Naturals Salon & Spa.

☆ Private equity acquires a taste for drug development
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-09 | by ( David Carnevali | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

Jan 9 (Reuters) - Private equity firms that deemed drug development too risky for their liking in the past are increasingly investing in the sector, raising dedicated funds and coming up with deals that compensate them for the uncertainty involved. These deals are not structured as the leveraged buyouts that private equity firms are mostly known for. In most cases, the drug makers start paying the money back to the private equity firms when the drug is being developed, either by issuing equity, tapping cash on hand or borrowing. They also share a slice of the newly developed drug's revenue with the private equity firms once it's approved. Private equity firms also provide capital to spin out drugs into new companies.

☆ Some analysts see a buying opportunity in Tesla for 2023 despite persistent demand pressures
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-03 | by ( Sarah Min | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Some Wall Street analysts see a buying opportunity in Tesla in 2023 — though others think the car maker's recent deliveries miss spells trouble for the electric vehicle maker. Kallo's $252 price target implies the stock can more than double from Friday's closing price of $123.18. The anayst reiterated a buy rating on Tesla, and maintained a $275 price target. Bernstein's Toni Sacconaghi also had an underperform rating on the stock, saying he expects that consensus estimates are too high, and that demand pressures will continue for Tesla. His $150 price target represents roughly 22% upside for shares of Tesla.

☆ Buyout barons will court the panicking masses
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-20 | by ( Jonathan Guilford | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Since they’ve already scoured traditional funding sources like pension funds and insurers, they’ll make a priority of tapping wealthy individuals in 2023. Even those slower to embrace the trend, like Carlyle (CG.O), are getting about 10% of inflows from individuals. Pension plans and other stalwarts have seen their stocks and bonds slump in value, potentially leaving them overexposed to buyout funds, private credit, real estate and infrastructure. These investors don’t always have the resources or stomach to lock up their money for half a decade or longer. Third-party platforms like Moonfare are proliferating, pooling retail capital into vehicles that buy stakes in buyout funds.

☆ India's Yes Bank completes transfer of $5.81 bln worth bad loans to J.C. Flowers
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-19 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

BENGALURU, Dec 19 (Reuters) - Indian private lender Yes Bank (YESB.NS) said on Monday it completed the transfer of bad loans worth 480 billion rupees ($5.81 billion) to private equity firm J.C. "This transaction would further strengthen our balance sheet, allowing the bank to focus fully on growth and profitability as future strategic objectives," Yes Bank Chief Executive Prashant Kumar said in a statement. Yes Bank's gross bad loan ratio edged down to 12.89% at the end of the September quarter from 13.45% at the end of June. Last week, Yes Bank also concluded allotting shares and share warrants worth $1.1 billion to private equity firms Carlyle (CG.O) and Advent International, in its bid to boost its capital and fund growth. read more($1 = 82.6430 Indian rupees)Reporting by Chris Thomas in Bengaluru; Editing by Maju SamuelOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ India bank sale sharpens valuation rivalry
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-15 | by ( Shritama Bose | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Sumitomo Mitsui Financial (8316.T), Carlyle (CG.O) and Fairfax Financial (FFH.TO) may each be eyeing some of the 61% stake on offer in $7 billion IDBI Bank (IDBI.NS), per reports by The Economic Times and Mint. These latecomers’ share of outstanding loans fell to 55% in March 2022 from 70% in 2016, per Reserve Bank of India data. CONTEXT NEWSIndia on Dec. 14 extended the deadline to submit preliminary bids for the sale of a controlling stake in IDBI Bank to Jan. 7 from Dec. 16. New Delhi intends to sell 30.48%; Life Insurance Corporation of India, which is almost entirely government-owned, will sell a 30.24% stake. Carlyle, Fairfax Financial and DBS Bank are considering bidding for at least 10% each in IDBI Bank, Mint reported on Nov. 7, citing unnamed sources.

☆ Link’s M&A chain breaks into pieces Down Under
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-08 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

MELBOURNE, Dec 8 (Reuters Breakingviews) - It’s hard to feel bad for well-compensated bankers but Link Administration’s (LNK.AX) M&A advisers at Macquarie (MQG.AX) and UBS (UBSG.S) need some Christmas cheer. On Thursday their client pulled the plug on negotiations for a partial takeover by Canada’s Dye & Durham (DND.TO), effectively accusing its suitor of dithering. Macquarie and UBS did manage Link’s sale of a slug of its 43% stake in mortgage-settlement company PEXA (PXA.AX) and may help distribute the remainder to shareholders. If Link offloads its troubled London unit, the slimmed-down company, worth perhaps A$800 million, could yet attract new interest. They do not reflect the views of Reuters News, which, under the Trust Principles, is committed to integrity, independence, and freedom from bias.

☆ Disney’s board needs some magic
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-06 | by ( Jennifer Saba | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

NEW YORK, Dec 6 (Reuters Breakingviews) - Bob Iger has a knack for head-faking his way out the door. Iger served as chief executive of the $175 billion media giant from 2005 until 2020. That stands in contrast to Netflix’s board, where more than half of the directors come from the entertainment sector including former Disney executive Anne Sweeney. Follow @jennifersaba on TwitterloadingCONTEXT NEWSWalt Disney on Nov. 20 said Bob Iger is returning as chief executive officer, effective immediately. Iger, 71, served as chief executive from 2005 until 2020.

☆ Eni’s $6 bln Neptune swoop will be a haggle-fest
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-01 | by ( George Hay | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

LONDON, Dec 1 (Reuters Breakingviews) - Eni (ENI.MI) is hunting for a bargain in the North Sea. Italy’s $52 billion oil major is mulling a bid for oil and gas producer Neptune Energy, Reuters reported on Wednesday, for an equity value of around $5 billion to $6 billion. Given Neptune’s owners CVC Capital Partners, Carlyle (CG.O) and China Investment Corporation last year wanted to list the business for $10 billion, Eni may have to haggle a bit. The UK government recently extended its windfall tax on North Sea drillers to 2028. And the Italian group’s own North Sea expertise may help it argue that the mooted offer price is generous.

LONDON, Nov 30 (Reuters) - Eni (ENI.MI) is in preliminary talks to buy private-equity backed gas and oil producer Neptune Energy for around $5 billion -$6 billion, a source with knowledge of the matter said on Wednesday, adding that no official bid had been submitted. Neptune produces around 130,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day (boed), three-quarters of which is gas. It has operations in Norway - home to Eni's Var unit - Britain, Indonesia - where Neptune shares licences with Eni - Algeria, the Netherlands and elsewhere. A banking source confirmed talks had taken place in recent weeks, but that the outcome was "far from guaranteed" as valuations differed. Eni and Neptune declined to comment.

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.

☆ Stocks finish higher as the Street awaits key inflation data next week
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-25 | by ( Zev Fima | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Stocks finished higher on this holiday-shortened trading week, with all the major U.S. averages posting gains. Under the hood, all sectors closed higher for the week, led by utilities, materials and financials. As a subscriber to the CNBC Investing Club with Jim Cramer, you will receive a trade alert before Jim makes a trade. Jim waits 45 minutes after sending a trade alert before buying or selling a stock in his charitable trust's portfolio. The U.S. Federal Reserve, alongside global central banks, has been trying to get a handle on soaring inflation.

☆ Carlyle sees big in Japan auto industry as EV shift shakes supply chains
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-22 | by ( Makiko Yamazaki | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

TOKYO, Nov 22 (Reuters) - U.S. private equity firm Carlyle Group Inc (CG.O) aims to enlarge its footprint in the Japanese automotive sector as the global shift to electric vehicles (EVs) shakes the industry's supply chain, its executives said. With the world quickly moving to EVs, Japanese auto parts suppliers are reviewing strategies that were traditionally tailored for combustion-engine cars, Reiji Terasaka, who heads Carlyle's Japan industrial team, told Reuters in an interview. The Japanese auto industry used to draw strengths from its decades-old keiretsu system - a hierarchical pyramid of equity-interlocked suppliers with automakers sitting atop and ensuring business security. Automakers might not be able to support all kinds of keiretsu companies anymore, Terasaka said, adding that he anticipated changes to how the keiretsu system operated. The private equity industry "has evolved over the last 10 to 20 years from where there was more of a focus on costs," Bernasek said.

☆ This 31-year-old CEO says staying focused on one disease was the key to helping his company raise $120 million in a frozen biotech market
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-18 | by ( Yeji Jesse Lee | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Arthur Kuan is the 31-year-old CEO of CG Oncology, a startup focused on treating bladder cancer. CG announced earlier this week that it has raised $120 million, despite a difficult biotech market. Since 2016, the year that Kuan became the CEO of CG Oncology, the Irvine, California-based cancer startup has raised big rounds from investors. "I think I've seen a lot of successful stories where you've stayed very focused on just one thing and you just see things that others don't by being very deep," Kuan told Insider. But when his father died that same year from pancreatic cancer, Kuan said he decided to focus on bladder cancer.

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