WALL STREET JOURNAL: Last December Chemtura Corp. (CEM), a specialty chemicals company with a market cap of about $1.9B, said it might sell itself, and now Blackstone Group (BX) and Apollo Management are in talks to buy the company, the Wall Street Journal reported…In part one of a series to help explain the reasons why Bear Stearns (BSC) collapsed, the Wall Street Journal said that the troubled firm was torn apart by executives who couldn’t agree on what course to take, including raising capital and slicing mortgage and related bonds from its inventory. And each of about six attempts to raise capital fell part…ECONOMIC TIMES: The American investor and Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) chief Warren Buffett said the United States is already in a recession that is deeper and will last longer than the public expects, the Economic Times reported…TELEGRAPH: According to the Telegraph, Barclays (BCS) is planning to sell Barclays Life Assurance Company, its life assurance arm, which has over GBP7B of funds under management. Sources believe potential bidders for the unit may include Pearl, Swiss Re (SWCEY), General Re, Canada Life and XL Re. Market commentators believe that on an embedded value basis, the unit is currently valued at around GBP1B…
TLM volatility at 45 into report of CEO interest
TLM closed at $23.44. The Globe and Mail say’s Long-held speculation that China is seeking to buy Canadian oil and gas companies resurfaced yesterday, as a Chinese newspaper reported the China National Offshore Oil Corp (CNOOC) CEO may be looking to acquire TLM. TLM July option implied volatility of 45 is above its 26-week average of 40 according to Track Data, suggesting larger price movement.
UBS on Monday warned that that it may have to record losses on non-U.S. real estate as it seeks nearly $16 billion from shareholders to repair a dented balance sheet. “UBS remains very cautious about the net new money outlook in the near term,” added the world’s top manager of assets. But as the subprime troubles cool down, others have sprung up. UBS’s exposure to auction-rate securities, used mostly in municipal financing, increased to 11 billion francs ($10.7 billion) from 6 billion francs during the first quarter.
UBS said its loss-making positions in real estate markets outside the U.S. “could increase,” the Swiss bank said in the prospectus.
All told, UBS has taken about $19.2 billion in write-downs and losses to an $82.6 billion portfolio of securities tied mostly to the U.S. housing market.
UBS gapping down hard this morning causing further weakness in the financials.
EXC upgraded to Buy from Neutral@GSCO
Goldman upgraded EXC based on the merchant nuclear generation business.
CELG: Dacogen data in June could be potential catalyst@LEER
Leerink believes the Phase III EORTC trial of Dacogen could potentially be a positive catalyst for CELG after learning of details about the status and timing on the trial. The firm expects results to be available in June and maintains an Outperform rating on the stock.
WLP upgraded to Outperform from Market Perform@BMOC
BMO Capital upgraded WLP based on improved visibility and expectations that the turnaround will result in a quicker earnings rebound. Target $69.
