Bottomline

Algeria’s state energy company Sonatrach has won an international arbitration case over a contract dispute with Tunisian firm Medex Petroleum North Africa, Sonatrach said on Tuesday.

Sonatrach launched the arbitration claim in 2015 to cancel contracts with Medex over the exploration and development of the southeastern fields of Bourarhat North and Erg Issaouane, the Algerian firm said in a statement.

Sonatrach said the decision would allow it to reclaim full control of the two fields, which have a combined daily production of 15,500 barrels of oil, 3.7 million cubic meters of gas, 8.680 million barrels of condensate, and 500 tonnes of LPG (liquefied petroleum gas). (RTRS)

Johnson & Johnson said Tuesday it has ending talks to buy Swiss drugmaker Actelion Pharmaceuticals.

The New Brunswick, New Jerseybased health care giant said it was unable to reach a deal that would have created “adequate value” for its shareholders. Last month, it said the two were in early-stage talks about a possible deal.

Actelion late Tuesday confirmed the negotiations with Johnson & Johnson had been broken off. It added, however, that it was in talks “another party regarding a possible strategic transaction.” It gave no further details. (AP)

Struggling car rental company Hertz has named a new CEO.

Kathryn Marinello will take over the wheel on Jan 3, succeeding John Tague, who is retiring, Hertz said Tuesday.

Marinello, who was also named to the company’s board, joins Hertz after stints at banking, business service and tech companies. She has served as senior adviser of asset manager Ares Management LLC since March 2014.

Tague had been president and CEO since November 2014.

The Estero, Florida, company said that three long-time directors are also leaving Hertz: Linda Fayne Levinson, Carl Berquist and Michael Durham. That will leave the board with seven directors, six of whom are independent. (AP)

Oilfield services company John Wood Group Plc’s CFO David Kemp said on Wednesday that the company showed modest recovery in some of its oil and gas markets, including US shale and offshore oil exploration and drilling businesses.

US shale is the largest contributor to company’s operations and maintenance contracts in its west region, which includes the Americas. John Wood Group said a steady rise in rig count would help its assets in the Permian, Eagle Ford, Marcellus, Utica and Bakken basins as the market recovers in 2017.

The number of oil rigs operating in the United States rose for a fifth straight week to 477, reaching the highest level since January as a surge in crude prices continued to bring equipment back into operation, weekly data from oil and gas services company Baker Hughes showed. (RTRS)

European industrial equipment supplier Loxam SAS said it reached an agreement on the terms of its offer to buy UK’s Lavendon Group Plc, valuing the UK company at about 374 million pounds ($473.5 million).

Loxam is locked in a bidding war with Belgian industrial equipment supplier TVH Group NV, which offered 205 pence per share, valuing Lavendon at 348 million pounds.

“Lavendon directors unanimously intend to recommend Loxam’s offer,” Loxam President Gerard Deprez said in a statement. (RTRS)

Punch Taverns Plc, Britain’s second largest pub operator by number of pubs, said on Wednesday that it received two takeover approaches, including one from Heineken.

Punch Tavern said it received a proposal from Patron Capital Advisers on behalf of Heineken for 174 pence per share. It also received an approach from Emerald Investment Partners Limited about a 185 pence per share offer for the company.

According to Reuters calculation, Heineken’s offer values Punch’s share equity at 386 million pounds ($488.83 million), and Emerald’s offer values it at 410 million pounds. (RTRS)

Cabela’s first shareholder meeting in more than a year didn’t last long, and executives didn’t address questions about the company’s proposed $4.5 billion sale to rival Bass Pro Shops.

The Omaha World-Herald reports the brief Cabela’s meeting attracted about 20 shareholders to its hometown of Sidney, Nebraska, on Tuesday.

The company plans to hold a separate shareholder meeting, so investors can vote on selling Cabela’s to Springfield, Missouri-based Bass Pro. Tuesday annual meeting had been delayed from the spring while Cabela’s weighed its options. (AP)

Spanish clothes retailer Inditex, which owns the Zara stores, says strong sales boosted net profit for its fiscal first nine months of 2016 by 9 percent.

Inditex said profit for the FebruaryOctober period was 2.2 billion euros ($2.33 billion), compared with 2 billion euros for the period last year.

Sales were up 11 percent at 16.4 million euros, compared with 14.7 billion euros for the nine-month period in 2015. Inditex says its strong performance allowed it to create 9,245 jobs over the past year. In the nine-month period, it opened 227 new stores, for a total of 7,240 outlets.

Founded in 1975, Inditex operates eight store brands including Massimo Dutti, Bershka and Oysho. (AP)

Inditex’s shares were down 0.2 percent at 32.9 euros in Wednesday morning trading in Madrid. (AP)

Financial services group Old Mutual Plc said its asset management unit OM Asset Management Plc’s (OMAM) public offering of 13 million shares was priced at $14.25 per share.

Old Mutual said on Tuesday it would sell shares in OMAM through a public offering, as the group prepares to split into its four main businesses.

The public offering is expected to close on Dec 19, said Old Mutual, which plans to continue to cut its stake in OMAM. The proposed split was disclosed in March as regulatory changes in Europe and South Africa have made Old Mutual, which started out in 1845 as a life insurance firm in Cape Town, more complex to run in its current form. (RTRS)