Investing moguls Warren Buffet and Wilbur Ross made buyout headlines today.
Buffet, the billionaire most known for investing in underperforming and fair-value stocks, announced his holding company, Omaha-based Berkshire Hathaway Inc. will acquire San Francisco-based press release distributor Business Wire, for an undisclosed amount, but one that some bankers put at nearly $400 million.
A Business Wire buy will add the business and financial newswire to Berkshire Hathaway’s holdings, which include Atlanta drink maker Coca-Cola Co.; Montvale, N.J., paint company Benjamin Moore & Co.; Washington auto insurer GEICO and Fruit of the Loom, an underwear and sportswear company of Bowling Green, Ky.
In other buyout news, ailing car parts maker Collins & Aikman Corp., which filed for bankruptcy protection in May, has begun shopping itself to potential investors, including turnaround king Wilbur Ross, according to a published report in The Wall Street Journal.
According to reports, an asking/offer price for the company has not been disclosed, but Troy, Mich.-based C&A did nearly $2.5 billion in North American sales in 2005.
Through his holding company, WL Ross & Co. LLC of New York, Ross agreed to purchase C&A’s European assets in December for more than $100 million. —Carolyn Murphy
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