GE to Merge Engine Unit with Wabtec, Fifth Third Buys MB Financial

Mukesh Buch
21 May, 2018
New York City

Blackstone agreed to acquire LaSalle Hotel $4.8 billion. Fifth Third Bancorp agreed to buy MB Financial in $4.7 billion. GE will merge its transportation business with Wabtec for $11 billion. Micron Technology lifted third-quarter revenues and profit forecast.

[R]12:55 PM New York City, New York – Blackstone agreed to acquire LaSalle Hotel $4.8 billion. Fifth Third Bancorp agreed to buy MB Financial in $4.7 billion. GE will merge its transportation business with Wabtec for $11 billion. Micron Technology lifted third-quarter revenues and profit forecast.[/R]

Tollbooth Index jumped 143.74 or 0.9% to 15,282.95 but for the year-to-date jumped 10.9%.

Earnings Review

The Blackstone Group L.P rose 10 cents to $31.39 after the asset manager and financial services provider agreed to acquire luxury hotel owner LaSalle Hotel Properties for about $4.8 billion, higher price than $3.5 billion offered by its rival Pebblebrook Hotel Trust in April.

LaSalle Hotel Properties stock soared 5.5% to $33.67.

On May 18, Blackstone agreed to sell its stake of 5% or 15.8 million shares in Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc valued at about $1.3 billion.

Fifth Third Bancorp diversified financial services provider agreed to buy its smaller rival MB Financial in a stock-and-cash deal for about $4.7 billion.

Under the terms, shareholders of MB Financial will receive $54.20 per share consisting of 1.45 shares of Fifth Third stock and $5.54 in cash for each share of MB Financial stock.

General Electric Co ((GE)) jumped 3.2% or 48 cents to $15.46 after the diversified industrial conglomerate today said that it will merge its transportation business which makes train engines to railroad with equipment-maker Wabtec Corp for $11.1 billion.

The transaction is expected to close in early next year.

Micron Technology, Inc ((MU)) jumped 4.2% or $2.23 to $55.62 after the flash memory chip maker lifted fiscal third-quarter revenue growth in the range of $7.70 billion to $7.80 billion from the earlier estimate of $7.20 billion to $7.60 billion and earnings per share between $3.12 and $3.16 from the earlier estimate of $2.76 to $2.90.

NextEra Energy, Inc ((NEE)) gained 1.9% or $2.94 to $159.43 after the clean energy producer and distributor agreed to acquire Gulf Power, Florida City Gas and its ownership interests in the Oleander and Stanton natural-gas generating plants in Florida for about $6.5 billion, including debt of $1.4 billion of Gulf Power.

Transaction is expects to complete for Florida City Gas in the third-quarter of this year and the Gulf Power and natural-gas generating plant acquisitions to close in the first-half of 2019.

Roper Technologies Inc ((ROP)) advanced 2.1% or $5.85 to $281.43 after the diversified software and engineered products maker agreed to acquire PowerPlan for about $1.1 billion in cash from the private equity firm Thoma Bravo.

The transaction is expected to close in the second-quarter.

Roper estimated PowerPlan to deliver $150 million of revenue and $60 million of after-tax free cash flow in the first year after the deal completes.