BAX sold
Moon Walker
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By Markus Wacket
BERLIN (Reuters) - The supervisory board of German rail operator Deutsche Bahn has approved the planned takeover of logistics company BAX Global, a unit of U.S. security firm Brink's, a Deutsche Bahn source said on Saturday.
Sources close to the deal told Reuters on Wednesday that the companies had agreed in exclusive talks on an acquisition price of $1.12 billion. Following the board approval, they are expected to sign a formal purchase agreement on Tuesday.
The companies have declined to comment on the deal.
Buying the Irvine, Calif.-based BAX, which has about 12,000 staff and posted sales last year of $2.4 billion, would boost Deutsche Bahn's U.S. competitiveness and strengthen its logistics arm, Schenker, by adding air and sea transport from the United States to Europe and Asia.
Heavy freight specialist BAX Global arranges for the delivery of overnight and second-day freight from one business to another in more than 130 countries.
It uses its own aircraft in North America and employs other carriers elsewhere. BAX also offers supply chain management services.
A Deutsche Bahn source said this week the company's Chief Executive Hartmut Mehdorn had held a meeting on the BAX purchase with outgoing German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder and Wolfgang Tiefensee, who is slated to become transport minister in a new government.
The government-owned rail operator had net debt of 19.5 billion euros at the end of 2004 and some politicians have openly questioned whether the BAX acquisition is a wise move.
Shares in Brink's, known for its armored car and home security business, surged 10 percent on Monday after Reuters reported that Deutsche Bahn was prepared to pay up to 1 billion euros for BAX.
Top Brink's shareholder MMI Investments LP, a New York-based hedge fund, has been urging the company to divest BAX, arguing that a sale would make the security firm more attractive to investors.
Following the supervisory board meeting on Saturday, Deutsche Bahn issued a statement saying that its performance in the first nine months of the year showed it was on track to reach its 2005 earnings target of 400 million euros after interest.
It had earned 250 million euros in full-year 2004.
"The company is fully on course. We will stick to our plans," Mehdorn said in the statement.
Deutsche Bahn said its nine-month result had improved by almost 200 million euros.
It had made a loss of 54 million euros in the same period of 2004.
The supervisory board also agreed to sell the Deutsche Bahn's advertising unit DERG to Stroeer Out-of-Home Media AG, the statement said, without giving financial details.
Industry sources had said that Stoeer bid about 100 million euros for the business, beating French rival JC Decaux.
Neil
BERLIN (Reuters) - The supervisory board of German rail operator Deutsche Bahn has approved the planned takeover of logistics company BAX Global, a unit of U.S. security firm Brink's, a Deutsche Bahn source said on Saturday.
Sources close to the deal told Reuters on Wednesday that the companies had agreed in exclusive talks on an acquisition price of $1.12 billion. Following the board approval, they are expected to sign a formal purchase agreement on Tuesday.
The companies have declined to comment on the deal.
Buying the Irvine, Calif.-based BAX, which has about 12,000 staff and posted sales last year of $2.4 billion, would boost Deutsche Bahn's U.S. competitiveness and strengthen its logistics arm, Schenker, by adding air and sea transport from the United States to Europe and Asia.
Heavy freight specialist BAX Global arranges for the delivery of overnight and second-day freight from one business to another in more than 130 countries.
It uses its own aircraft in North America and employs other carriers elsewhere. BAX also offers supply chain management services.
A Deutsche Bahn source said this week the company's Chief Executive Hartmut Mehdorn had held a meeting on the BAX purchase with outgoing German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder and Wolfgang Tiefensee, who is slated to become transport minister in a new government.
The government-owned rail operator had net debt of 19.5 billion euros at the end of 2004 and some politicians have openly questioned whether the BAX acquisition is a wise move.
Shares in Brink's, known for its armored car and home security business, surged 10 percent on Monday after Reuters reported that Deutsche Bahn was prepared to pay up to 1 billion euros for BAX.
Top Brink's shareholder MMI Investments LP, a New York-based hedge fund, has been urging the company to divest BAX, arguing that a sale would make the security firm more attractive to investors.
Following the supervisory board meeting on Saturday, Deutsche Bahn issued a statement saying that its performance in the first nine months of the year showed it was on track to reach its 2005 earnings target of 400 million euros after interest.
It had earned 250 million euros in full-year 2004.
"The company is fully on course. We will stick to our plans," Mehdorn said in the statement.
Deutsche Bahn said its nine-month result had improved by almost 200 million euros.
It had made a loss of 54 million euros in the same period of 2004.
The supervisory board also agreed to sell the Deutsche Bahn's advertising unit DERG to Stroeer Out-of-Home Media AG, the statement said, without giving financial details.
Industry sources had said that Stoeer bid about 100 million euros for the business, beating French rival JC Decaux.
Neil
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Makes sense under the US ownership laws (if they themselves make any sense!) that DB would not be able to retain ownership of the airline (see Deutche Post & DHL/ABX). Look for a management buy-out & then recontract back to the new BAX.
RT
RT
