M&A and IPO News 9/22/08

[David Sandusky]

This weeks acquisitions and IPO news as compiled by AIRS newsletter. You know about Merrill Lynch fire sale to Bank of America - see what else happened this week.

IPO - Biotechnology Research Equipment

Fluidigm Corporation

Fluidigm develops, manufactures, and markets proprietary integrated fluidic circuit (IFC) systems that significantly improve productivity in life science research. The company's products have not been cleared or approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for use as a diagnostic and are only available for research purposes.
Location:
Empoyees: 131
Date: 9/15/2008
NASDAQ: FLDM



M&A - Banking

Buyer: Lloyds TSB Group plc, London, UK

Target: HBOS plc, Edinburgh, UK



Lloyds TSB, one of the UK's largest banks (not to be confused with British insurance market Lloyd's of London), has agreed to buy HBOS, a leading UK bank crippled by hedge funds. The all-stock deal is valued at $22.2 billion.
MarketWatch, September 18, 2008






M&A - Energy & Utilities

Buyer: MidAmerican Energy Holdings Company, Des Moines, IA

Target: Constellation Energy Group, Inc., Baltimore, MD



MidAmerican Energy Holdings, owned by Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway, will buy Constellation Energy for $4.7 billion and pump $1 billion into the company. Constellation Energy, the nation's largest wholesale power seller, has seen its stock plummet amid liquidity concerns.
Associated Press, September 18, 2008






M&A - Financial Services

Buyer: Bank of America Corporation, Charlotte, NC

Target: Merrill Lynch & Co., Inc., New York, NY



Bank of America, the largest consumer bank in the United States, has agreed to acquire brokerage firm Merrill Lynch for about $50 billion. Merrill Lynch, which has lost $52.2 billion as a result of investments in subprime-mortgage securities, was in danger of becoming a casualty of the credit crisis until Bank of America came to its rescue.
Bloomberg, September 15, 2008






M&A - Internet Music Distribution & Downloads

Buyer: Best Buy Co., Inc., Richfield, MN

Target: Napster, Inc., Los Angeles, CA



Best Buy, the biggest consumer electronics outlet in the United States, has agreed to buy digital music service Napster for $121 million. By combining forces, the companies hope to challenge Apple, which currently has more than 70 percent of the U.S. digital music market.
Reuters, September 15, 2008






M&A - Investment Banking

Buyer: Barclays plc, London, UK

Target: Investment Banking Unit of Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc., New York, NY



Barclays, the UK's third-largest bank, will acquire the North American investment-banking business of Lehman Brothers Holdings, the investment banking giant that declared bankruptcy as a result of the credit crisis. Barclays, which originally considered a complete takeover of Lehman Brothers, will pay $1.75 billion for the business.
Bloomberg, September 17, 2008






M&A - Tobacco

Buyer: Altria Group, Inc., Richmond, VA

Target: UST Inc., Stamford, CT



Cigarette maker Altria, owner of Philip Morris USA, will buy UST, maker of Skoal and Copenhagen smokeless tobacco, for $10.4 billion. The acquisition is part of a wider movement toward consolidation in the tobacco industry, which faces a decline in cigarette sales.
The Boston Globe, September 9, 2008