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Strategies & Market Trends : Speculating in Takeover Targets -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: richardred who wrote (1874)	2/21/2008 10:56:45 AM
From: richardred	Respond to of 7248

NIKE, Inc. Sells Bauer Hockey Subsidiary to Kohlberg & Company and W. Graeme Roustan for $200 Million Thursday February 21, 9:05 am ET BEAVERTON, Ore.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--NIKE, Inc. (NYSE:NKE - News) today announced that it has reached a definitive agreement to sell its Bauer Hockey subsidiary to an investor group led by Kohlberg & Company and Canadian businessman W. Graeme Roustan for $200 million in cash. Nike expects the transaction to be completed before the end of its current fiscal year. “We’re pleased to have reached an agreement for Bauer with strategic buyers who have a passion for hockey and are committed to continue to invest in Bauer’s long-term growth and brand leadership,” said Nike, Inc. President and CEO Mark Parker. “Nike Bauer Hockey has been part of the Nike family for 12 years, and its team has done an incredible job. Selling this great hockey company was a tough decision but one that was in the best interests of Nike and Bauer as we each look to maximize our respective growth opportunities.” Bauer, hockey’s leading manufacturer, has delivered innovative products for over 80 years. Founded in 1927, Bauer developed the first skate with the blade attached to the boot, forever changing the game of hockey. Since then, Bauer has continued to develop the most sought after products in the industry, including the widely successful Supreme and Vapor lines of equipment. Bauer is set to once again raise the bar in innovation when it introduces the Supreme One95 skate and 9500 helmet this spring. “Throughout the entire sale process, we were committed to find the right partner to continue moving our business forward and we have definitely found that partner,” said Mark Duggan, CEO, Nike Bauer Hockey. “Our new partners have a genuine enthusiasm for the hockey industry and we are confident their commitment will only strengthen our No. 1 position in the marketplace.” “Bauer is the most coveted hockey brand in the world, dating back to 1927, and is a big part of hockey’s DNA,” said Roustan, who will serve as Chairman of Bauer Hockey. “It is a personal honor and privilege to have the opportunity to work with the existing dedicated team of professionals at Bauer and support this great company’s continued industry leadership well into the future.” Nike decided to divest Bauer, acquired in 1995, following a strategic review of the company’s subsidiary businesses. As part of the company’s long-term growth strategy, Nike is optimizing its portfolio of subsidiary brands, which contribute more than $2 billion in annual revenues, to ensure the company is investing in the greatest growth opportunities with the highest returns. Under the terms of the deal, Bauer will continue to use the Nike Bauer Hockey trademark on existing products for a period of up to two years. Lazard acted as financial advisor, and Tonkon Torp acted as legal advisor to Nike in the transaction. Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison acted as legal advisor to Kohlberg and Mr. Roustan. About Nike About NIKE, Inc. based near Beaverton, Oregon, is the world’s leading designer, marketer and distributor of authentic athletic footwear, apparel, equipment and accessories for a wide variety of sports and fitness activities. Wholly owned Nike subsidiaries include Converse Inc., which designs, markets and distributes athletic footwear, apparel and accessories; Cole Haan Holdings Incorporated, which designs, markets and distributes luxury shoes, handbags, accessories and coats; and Hurley International LLC, which designs, markets and distributes action sports and youth lifestyle footwear, apparel and accessories. For more information, visit www.nikebiz.com. About Kohlberg & Company Kohlberg & Company is a leading private equity firm with offices in Mt. Kisco, New York and Portola Valley, California. Since its inception in 1987, Kohlberg has completed more than 45 platform investments and more than 50 add-on acquisitions, with aggregate transaction value in excess of $7 billion. Kohlberg has invested over $2 billion across six private equity funds to date, including through its current $1.5 billion sixth fund, Kohlberg Investors VI. About W. Graeme Roustan W. Graeme Roustan is a native of Montreal, Quebec, Canada where he grew up playing hockey from the age of three. Through his wholly owned holding company ROUSTAN INC., Roustan places equity investments primarily in the arena and aviation industries. Roustan brings an extensive network of long-term relationships in the ice hockey industry and community, proven business acumen and significant financial resources to follow his vision of vertical integration of the arena marketplace worldwide. Roustan’s extensive portfolios of arena businesses are managed as part of ROUSTANUNITED www.roustanunited.com. For more information, visit the website at www.roustan.com. Contact: NIKE, Inc. Investor Contact: Pamela Catlett, 503-671-4589 or Media Contact: Derek Kent, 503-532-1405 Source: NIKE, Inc. biz.yahoo.com

To: richardred who wrote (1874)	4/6/2009 11:06:27 AM
From: richardred	Respond to of 7248

Should Nike Make a Play for Under Armour? by: Wanting Green April 06, 2009 \| Nike (NKE) needs to start considering what benefits they would have by exploring a purchase of Under Armour (UA). Nike has tried to duplicate many of Under Armour's signature products, including the first product, the Under Armour underwear gear. Additionally, Under Armour's cold gear is a popular item for football players in cold weather games, along with their increasing popularity to younger generations of athletes. Under Armour's recent introduction of running shoes is also a threat to long term shareholder value for Nike. As of right now, the shoes are barely noticeable to Nike, with billions of dollars of sales in running shoes and running apparel for Nike. Under Armour is only trying to steal a small piece of the pie. But, with young consumers very aware of the Under Armour brand, it seems that Under Armour has the momentum to one day steal a greater piece of that pie. Nike could act now to thwart any chances of Under Armour damaging their market share. Obviously, any threat is years away, but now is the time to put an end to that possibility. But, the biggest benefit would be a purchase of Under Armour at a depressed price and before they truly start developing momentum as a public company. Currently, Under Armour is trading south of $20 a share ($18.07 as of April 3). Nike could use their $2.6 billion in cash or more prudently offer a deal that includes their stock as consideration. If Nike offered in the $28-33 a share range they would be offering an excellent premium - a premium that most shareholders will not be able to turn down, and a price the board will have a hard time rejecting (but they will try and try hard). CEO Kevin Plank would likely put up a strong fight. It is doubtful that he would want to sell the company that he has built from the ground up at such a young stage, or even at all. That is why the strong premium would be necessary. Insiders currently own less than 7% of the company. This means Plank does not have the votes necessary to defeat a strong takeover attempt by Nike. He would have to show his large shareholders that he has a long term plan superior to the offer by Nike. A difficult burden, considering the economy and retail's relative uncertainty. Nike needs this deal to take advantage of the recession. They have an iconic brand and management has made prudent decisions over the last decade. Nike has a relatively small debt load for a retailer (800 million) and this would not add to that burden. Moreover, Nike still has momentum in a variety of developing nations, introducing Under Armour would only help that cause. Pulling the trigger now will allow Nike to gradually incorporate Under Armour within their brand and decrease competition for many of the products they sale head to head. This will have the benefit of increasing margins and stifling any attempt at price wars. Nike can clearly compete against Under Armour, and will probably win most of the battles over the long run. But, instead they could acquire Under Armour at a discount price, use their inventory controls, superior management, and industry knowledge to build a stronger Under Armour, cut costs and create a real asset to shareholders. Such a purchase would also ensure that Nike's growth continues. Nike is becoming a mature company and growth is still respectable, but Under Armour if properly utilized and managed could add to the bottom line in a big way. At the very least, Nike needs to consider the option. And if they deem the option to be profitable, they need to act quickly, because Under Armour will not always be trading under $20 dollars a share. seekingalpha.com