Another Takeover!

Tiffany's & Moet Hennessey Louis Vuitton

More takeover speculation amidst retailers. This time it is with top-of-the-line companies, Tiffany and LVMH. Monday shares of Tiffany closed up 4% after topping out up 6.8% in intraday trading. Again, this is just speculation and may not ever happen, but I think that it could be a match made in heaven, here's why:

-Tiffany's is headquartered in NYC and LVMH in Paris, both two of the top cities for fashion and wealth, this could be used to increase operating efficiency in the two different markets.

-LVMH doesn't have a fine jewelery segment that I know of and Tiffany's doesn't sell clothing, wine, etc.; here is another way that they seem to match well

-Both are known for extraordinary quality and prestige.

-Finally, I just think it could reduce overhead because they could close stores, cut staff and increase shoppers efficiency by having a stop shop for luxury goods.

http://biz.yahoo.com/rb/070625/tiffany_shares.html?.v=4

http://www.flickr.com/photos/irishclare/108765351/

Barney's Buyout & Macy's Takeover

Barney's:
On June 22, 2006 Jones Apparel announced they have found a buyer for Barney's New York, an upscale department store chain. They reported that a private equity firm out of Dubai will purchase 34 stores and two semi-annual warehouse sales for a nice $825 million. Jones paid less than half that when they purchased the company three years ago.
http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/jones-apparel-finds-buyer-barneys/story.aspx?guid=%7B233B58DD%2D49A1%2D4290%2DBBEE%2DC1BEF49A2AD8%7D&siteid=yhoof

Macy's:
Thats right! The newly name-changed company, formerly Federated Department Stores, Inc., has been rumored that it may be a target for takeover. Friday Macy's stock ended up around 6.5% due to the speculation of the takeover. The speculation stemmed from the movement of the stock recently and 22,515,618 shares were traded Friday compared to an average of only 6,984,260. The rumor is unconfirmed and who knows the jump volume may be due to insider information about something that is to be released that would kill the stock price!
http://finance.yahoo.com/q?s=m & http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/070622/macy_s_speculation.html?.v=3

With the

Macy's, Inc. Inflated Stock Price

Stull, Stull & Brody among other law firms have filed class action law suits against Macy's, Inc. the predecessor company to Federated Department Stores. The suit states that executives of the company had inflated the stock price between February 8, 2007 and May 15, 2007. The inflation was due to the ommission of the former May Department Stores locations decreasing sales and negative consumer feedback about the name changes that took away stores like Marshall Field's, L.S. Ayres and Filene's.

AOL Finance article "Stull, Stull & Brody Announces Investigation Relating to Class Action on Behalf of Shareholders of Macy's Inc. (f/k/a/ Federated Department Stores, Inc.)" aided to the posting of this blog.

Moet Hennessey - Louis Vuitton

LVMH has recently expanded their wines and spirites division by purchasing a 55% stake of a 450 year old distillery in China, Wen Jun Distillery. Wen Jun is know for the fine white spirits it has produced for centuries and should be a great fit with the luxury wines of Moet Hennessey.

A 22% increase in the dividend based on 2006 was also announced showing the strength of this leading company in the luxury market.

Information for this posting came from the press releases section of www.lvmh.com.

!!AUCTION!!

Luxury products are being sold at the auction recently. Yes, we have all heard of eBay and going to the estate auction down the street, but these auctions are nothing compared to the auctions of Christie's and Gooding & Company. These companies have been selling luxury goods, specifically cars and watches. A Geneva, Switzerland based auction house, Antiquorum, which focuses on timepieces and similar instruments, has seen sales jump over 65% since 2003. Watch brands such as Rolex, Cartier and Patek Philippe have all been popular recently with a 2499 Patek Philippe estimated to go at auction for $400,000 or upwards $1 million for a rare pink gold one. Cars are also bringing premium prices like a 1957 Ferarri 410 Superamerica Speciale with an estimate of $900,000+.

Information for this post came from "Life at the Top" a luxury report special in the June 11, 2007 version of Fortune.