Mergers, acquisitions on fast track
December’s $361 billion deal haul busiest in a decade
Just as most people are packing up for Christmas, deal-makers across the world are rushing to finish up a slew of transactions in industries ranging from consumer and telecom to health care and gambling.
Companies have announced about $361 billion worth of mergers and acquisitions this month, making it the busiest December in at least 12 years, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. On Friday, the last workday before bankers’ and executives’ break for the holiday, GVC Holdings PLC of the United Kingdom agreed to buy bookmaker Ladbrokes Coral Group PLC for as much as $5.4 billion, Deutsche Telekom AG said it will buy Liberty Global PLC’s Austrian unit, and Roche Holding AG announced the $1.7 billion acquisition of U.S. biotechnology company Ignyta Inc.
“We have announced three new takeover deals in the last month, and we have worked on a range of M&A continuing through the holiday,” said Gavin Davies, global head of M&A at law firm Herbert Smith Freehills in London. “Clients want to get deals done, for growth, for rationalization, and to get ahead of tech disruption, and they are working hard to make those deals happen despite a more challenging political and economic M&A environment.”
Europe has been a hot spot for mergers and acquisitions this year on the back of a more stable economic outlook and growing confidence. This month, Unibail-Rodamco SE, Europe’s largest commercial landlord, agreed to buy
Australia’s shopping center company Westfield Corp. for about $16 billion, and French aerospace specialist Thales SA struck a deal for cybersecurity provider Gemalto NV for about $5.6 billion.
Still, the United States has seen the biggest transactions in December, led by CVS Health Corp.’s $67.5 billion purchase of Aetna Inc., creating a health-care giant that will have a hand in everything from insurance to the corner drugstore. Also in
December, Walt Disney Co. agreed to acquire a large part of media mogul Rupert Murdoch’s 21st Century Fox Inc. in a $52.4 billion deal.
“Low economic growth continues to be a key driver for deal making, and signs of interest-rate rises — albeit gradual — may be encouraging buyers to move sooner rather than later,” said Katherine Moir, a mergers and acquisitions partner at law firm Clifford Chance in London.
Asia and Latin America also have been active in the run-up to Christmas. On Wednesday, Asahi Group Holdings Ltd. agreed to sell
its stake in Tsingtao Brewery Co. to conglomerate Fosun Group and the local brewer for about $941 million. Boeing Co. is considering a combination with Brazil’s Embraer SA, setting the stage for a potential blockbuster deal.
The busy end of the year may spill over to January and beyond, according to Ben Ward, U.K. corporate finance expert and head of the London corporate team at Herbert Smith Freehills. “Markets and investors are coming to terms with changing risks, and we expect appetite for significant M&A to continue into next year,” he said.