Coverage: Two fertilizer companies in talks to combine

Canadian fertilizer giants Agrium Inc. and Potash Corp. are in talks about a possible merger of equals that would create a company worth $28 billion as the industry contends with lower earnings. Ben Dummett of The Wall Street Journal has the news: For the first six months of this year, Agrium’s retail business generated sales of $8.1 billion, […]

Coverage: Mondelez walks away from Hershey

Mondelez International Inc. ended its bid to acquire Hershey Co.after the famed chocolate-bar maker rebuffed a new takeover offer and indicated it would be difficult to strike a deal before next year. Jess Stynes and Dana Cimulluca of The Wall Street Journal had the news: Mondelez said in a statement after the market closed Monday that it determined […]

Coverage: Pfizer buying Medivation for $14 billion

Pfizer Inc., beating out numerous other bidders, said Monday that it agreed to buy U.S. drug company Medivation Inc. for $14 billion, expanding its prostate cancer drug business. Ransdell Pierson and Ankur Banerjee of Reuters had the news: Medivation shares jumped nearly 20 percent to close at $80.42, just shy of the offer price of $81.50 […]

Coverage: Univision buys Gawker for $135 million

Univision won the bidding for blogging news company Gawker, paying $135 million for Nick Denton’s company forced into bankruptcy court protection after it lost a lawsuit for invasion of privacy from wrestler Hulk Hogan. Peter Kafka of Recode has the news: The TV network and digital publisher has agreed to pay $135 million for the bankrupt […]

Coverage: Disney buys stake in baseball streaming service

Walt Disney Co. announced Tuesday that it was spending $1 billion to buy a stake in the Major League Baseball streaming service, adding to its ESPN sports business. Ben Fritz and Shalini Ramachandran of The Wall Street Journal had the news: One year after its shares began a 12% slide driven by concerns over ESPN’s growth trajectory, Walt […]

Coverage: South African company buying Sleepy’s/Mattress Firm for $2.4 billion

A South African retailing giant has agreed to acquire Sleepy’s parent Mattress Firm Holding Co. for $2.4 billion, marking its first foray into the United States. Alexandra Wexler of The Wall Street Journal had the news: Steinhoff, a family-owned furniture seller based outside Cape Town, South Africa, is called “Africa’s Ikea” for its home furnishing retail […]

Coverage: Verizon buys Yahoo for $4.8 billion

Verizon Communications is expected to announce a deal Monday morning to acquire Yahoo Inc. for $4.8 billion, adding it to its AOL internet business. Ryan Knutson and Deepa Seetharaman of The Wall Street Journal have the news: The price tag, which includes Yahoo’s core internet business and some real estate, is a remarkable fall for the Silicon […]

Coverage: Exxon makes $2.2B offer for InterOil

Exxon Mobil Corp. offered a $2.2 billion bid for InterOil Corp., higher than the one made in may by Oil Search Ltd., on Sunday to acquire the owner of large natural gas reserves in Papua New Guinea. Dan Murtaugh of Bloomberg News has the news: Exxon is offering a fixed price of $45 per each InterOil share, Oil Search said […]

Coverage: Bayer boosts bid for Monsanto

German drug and chemical company Bayer AG upped its offer for American seed company Monsanto to $64 billion, putting pressure on the target to consider the deal. Greg Roumeliotis and Karl Plume of Reuters had the news: Analysts and some Monsanto shareholders were quick to opine that Bayer’s latest offer, the largest all-cash takeover bid on record, was unlikely […]

Coverage: Danone to buy WhiteWave for $10 billion

French food company Danone announced Thursday that it is acquiring the WhiteWave Foods Co.— maker of Horizon Organic dairy products and Earthbound Farm salad greens — for $10.4 billion, expanding its business in the United States. Stephanie Strom of the New York Times has the news: The deal, aimed at enhancing the American profile of the company […]