BUSINESS NEWS
20 Aug 08. Cobham plc has reached agreement to acquire the trade and net assets of GMS Inc. (‘GMS’) from The Allied Defense Group, Inc. for a cash consideration of $26m on a debt and cash free basis, payable on completion. The acquisition of GMS is expected to complete before the end of 2008 subject to customary closing conditions and approval from the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States. GMS, which employs 50 people, is based in Carlsbad, California and will become part of the Cobham Avionics and Surveillance Division. GMS designs and manufactures digital equipment which is used in a variety of applications and is sold primarily into US law enforcement and national security and defence markets, together with the broadcast market. GMS products include video surveillance systems and high definition wireless video technologies suitable for both standard law enforcement and mission critical communications applications. Its defence related products have applications on unmanned aerial and ground vehicles. GMS is an excellent technological fit with Cobham’s existing business, offering complementary products and capabilities which present opportunities for synergistic growth. It provides Cobham with access to a wider customer base and creates a physical presence on the west coast of the USA for its intelligence and surveillance business. On completion, the business will operate under the existing Cobham Surveillance Special Security Arrangement.
16 Aug 08. Cadence Design Systems Inc. withdrew its $1.49bn proposal to acquire Mentor Graphics Corp. after being rebuffed by the rival semiconductor-design-software company’s board and management.Following the withdrawal, Mentor shares fell 26% to $10.33. Cadence shares rose 6.7% to $7.64. “Mentor Graphics’ failure to engage in substantive discussions on our all-cash premium proposal prevented us from confirming for our financing sources the significant synergies associated with this transaction,” Cadence said. “That, along with our revised outlook and the present economic climate, led us to conclude that financing terms for the transaction are no longer attractive for our shareholders. “Cadence, which in July reported a steep drop in second-quarter earnings and slashed its guidance for 2008, has faced some outside criticism of its bid for Mentor, with analysts at Needham & Co. calling it “ill-timed.” In June, Cadence offered $16 a share for Mentor, a 30% premium over what the shares were trading at before the deal was announced. At the time, Cadence Chief Executive Michael Fister said the deal would allow greater integration of its product line, which focuses on initial steps in designing semiconductors, with Mentor’s software, which specializes in steps associated with manufacturing. Mentor responded to the withdrawal, saying that it was inconsistent with both Cadence’s recent public and private communications with the company. (Source: WSJ)
20 Aug 08. TenCate records profit growth of 47% for first half of 2008. Sales in the second quarter of 2008 increased by 28% to €302m. In autonomous terms growth was 11%. The currency effect on sales amounted to -8%. The growth can be attributed to both American military orders for protective fabrics and vehicle armour (acquisition of Composix) and to European military orders for vehicle armour. In addition, there were increasing sales of aerospace composites, mainly due to the deliveries to Airbus Industries and strong growth in the sales of synthetic turf activities. Apart from the geosynthetics market in the US, which is mainly related to activities in the construction and infrastructure industry, there was in the second quarter a continuation of the growth in the core markets in which TenCate occupies leading positions worldwide. The recent opening of the production site in China for geosynthetics and the joint venture in Thailand for safety fabrics has strengthened the position in the rapidly growing Asian