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

To: richardred who wrote (2499)	11/6/2010 12:37:47 AM
From: richardred	Respond to of 7242

IDT Corporation Announces Strategic Initiatives, Including Dividends, a Spin-off and an Exchange Offer businesswire Press Release Source: IDT Corporation On Friday November 5, 2010, 5:15 pm EDT NEWARK, N.J.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- IDT Corporation (NYSE:IDT - News) today announced a series of strategic moves, including dividends, that establish a framework for long term appreciation of shareholder value. On November 2, 2010, IDT’s Board of Directors authorized an initial cash dividend of $0.22 per share to be paid on or about November 23rd to shareholders of record at the close of business on November 15th of IDT Corporation Common Stock, Class A Common Stock and Class B Common Stock. IDT expects to announce an additional cash dividend of comparable magnitude during the second quarter of IDT’s 2011 fiscal year, the three months ending January 31, 2011. The Board also stated its intent for IDT to pay future quarterly dividends based on operating performance and available resources. At the same meeting, the Board approved the launch of an offer to exchange one share of Class B Common Stock (NYSE:IDT - News) for each share of Common Stock (NYSE:IDT.C - News) outstanding. As of November 4th, 2010, there were 3,728,655 shares of IDT Common Stock outstanding. The exchange offer is being made in light of the limited liquidity in the market for the Common Stock and the resulting disparity in the trading prices for the two classes despite the fact that the equity rights associated with the shares of each class are nearly identical. Following the completion of the exchange offer, the Common Stock may be delisted from the NYSE. Howard Jonas, who controls approximately 76% of the combined voting power of IDT’s outstanding capital stock, will adjust his holdings of IDT Class A Common Stock and Common Stock so as not to increase his combined voting power as a result of the exchange offer. The exchange offer will commence when the definitive materials (including an Offer to Exchange and Letter of Transmittal) are filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission and made available to IDT’s stockholders and will remain open for at least twenty business days. IDT will file with the Securities and Exchange Commission and mail to stockholders exchange offer documents with full details of the offer, including complete instructions on the exchange process procedure along with the transmittal forms and other data when the offer is commenced. In addition, the Board has directed management to pursue a spin-off of its Genie Energy division. The spinoff of Genie Energy under consideration is intended to be tax-free to IDT stockholders. Genie Energy would include: * IDT Energy, an energy services company operating in New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania; * American Shale Oil Corporation (AMSO), which holds IDT’s interest in the a joint oil shale venture with Total, SA operating in Western Colorado; * Israel Energy Initiatives (IEI), which holds a majority interest in an oil shale venture in Israel, and; * Certain related smaller initiatives, and the cash resources necessary to execute on those projects. The Board also directed management to explore options to license and defend certain intellectual property rights currently owned by IDT Telecom and Net2Phone related to VoIP and other aspects of the telecommunications industry including a possible spin-off of a separate entity. “The moves that we are announcing today provide a framework that will help shareholders realize the underlying value of IDT’s businesses and holdings,” Howard Jonas, Chairman and CEO of IDT said. “Since completing our restructuring program, both of our core IDT Telecom and Genie Energy businesses have demonstrated their capacity to generate sustained, positive cash flow,” Jonas added. “The near term dividends will allow shareholders to reap the benefits of those improvements, while future dividends will reflect the performance of IDT Telecom and the other businesses that will remain at IDT. The exchange offer is intended to simplify our capital structure, promote efficiencies and level the playing field for the holders of our two classes of public equity. The spin-off of Genie Energy will enable both Genie and IDT Telecom to focus on their respective growth strategies and more effectively meet their long term capital requirements while providing investors with industry focused investment vehicles.” finance.yahoo.com

To: richardred who wrote (2499)	11/16/2010 12:44:23 AM
From: richardred	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 7242

Business and Financial Leaders Lord Rothschild and Rupert Murdoch Invest in Genie Oil & Gas NEWARK, N.J., Nov 15, 2010 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- Genie Energy Corporation (Genie Energy), a division of IDT Corporation , today announced that Lord (Jacob) Rothschild and Rupert Murdoch have each purchased equity stakes in Genie Oil and Gas Inc. Jacob Rothschild will join Rupert Murdoch on Genie Energy's Strategic Advisory Board and Jacob Rothschild's interests will partner with Genie Energy to raise capital for the eventual commercialization of its oil shale projects. Jacob Rothschild and Mr. Murdoch separately purchased equity positions equivalent to a cumulative 5.5% stake in Genie Oil and Gas Inc., which consists of IDT's interests in American Shale Oil, LLC (AMSO), and Israel Energy Initiatives, Ltd., (IEI), for a total of $11.0 million dollars. Claude Pupkin, CEO of Genie Oil and Gas, commented, "Genie's success will ultimately depend, in part, on access to the expertise of the oil and gas industry and to the financial markets. Jacob Rothschild and Rupert Murdoch are extremely well regarded by and connected to leaders in these sectors. Their guidance and participation will prove invaluable." "I am grateful to Howard Jonas and IDT for the opportunity to invest in this important initiative," Lord Rothschild said. "Rupert Murdoch's extraordinary achievements speak for themselves and we are very pleased he has agreed to be our partner. Genie Energy is making good technological progress to tap the world's substantial oil shale deposits which could transform the future prospects of Israel, the Middle East and our allies around the world." Jacob Rothschild, OM, GBE is Chairman of the J. Rothschild group of companies and of RIT Capital Partners plc (RITCP), the investment trust company. RITCP is listed on the London Stock Exchange and has a market cap of over GBP 1.7 billion. Jacob Rothschild is also Chairman of Five Arrows Limited, a family investment company, and a number of other companies. Jacob Rothschild is a noted philanthropist, and serves as Chairman of the Rothschild Foundation. "The Rothschild family continues to build on its 250-year tradition of leadership in the financing of innovation and growth," said IDT's Chairman and CEO, Howard Jonas. "It is a great honor to me, my family and our Company that he has agreed to partner with us to advance this project to its successful conclusion. Rupert Murdoch is the greatest and most well informed media magnate of our generation. His decision to invest in our shale initiatives and serve on Genie's Strategic Advisory Board is very gratifying and we look forward to benefiting from his input." "Covering and distributing news has been my life's work," said Mr. Murdoch. "If Genie's effort to develop shale oil is successful, as I believe it will be, then the news we'll report in the coming decades will reflect a more prosperous, more democratic, and more secure world." Rupert Murdoch is the founder, Chairman of the Board, and CEO of News Corporation, one of the world's largest diversified media companies. News Corporation's holdings include Fox Entertainment, The Wall Street Journal, the New York Post, HarperCollins and significant other media assets on six continents. Other members of Genie's Strategic Advisory Board are: Alan K. Burnham, PhD - Chief Technology Officer, American Shale Oil, LLC.; Research scientist at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory for over 30 years; Dick Cheney - 46th Vice President of the United States. Former President and CEO of Halliburton Company, and U.S. Secretary of Defense; Wes Perry - Chairman of the Board, Genie Energy. Founder and CEO of E.G.L. Resources, an energy exploration and development company; Allan Sass, PhD - Former President and CEO of Occidental Oil Shale, a subsidiary of Occidental Petroleum; Michael Steinhardt - Principal Manager, Steinhardt Management LLC. Renowned hedge fund investor and founder Steinhardt, Fine, Berkowitz & Co., and noted philanthropist; Eugene A. Renna - Former Executive Vice President of Exxon Mobil and a member of its Board. Also formerly President and COO of Mobil Corporation; Stephen M. Trauber - Vice Chairman and Global Head; Energy Investment Banking Group, UBS Investment Bank; Harold Vinegar, PhD - Former Chief Scientist - Royal Dutch Shell. About Genie Energy: Genie Energy Corporation is a division of IDT Corporation (www.idt.net), a consumer services company with operations primarily in the telecommunications and energy industries. IDT Corporation's Class B Common Stock and Common Stock trade on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbols IDT and IDT.C, respectively. Genie Energy is comprised of IDT Energy, an energy services company that resells electricity and natural gas to residential and small business customers primarily in New York State, and Genie Oil and Gas, Inc., which consists of (1) American Shale Oil Corporation which holds and manages a 50% interest in American Shale Oil, LLC, a joint shale oil initiative in Colorado with Total, S.A., and (2) an 89% interest in Israel Energy Initiatives, Ltd., a shale oil initiative in Israel. SOURCE: IDT Corporation marketwatch.com