In early 2015, many economies around the world were already dealing with a downturn in the markets when the price of oil dropped steadily, which had a strong impact on oil-dependent economies in the Persian Gulf region. As the corporate debt market decreased considerably, the airline Emirates (owned by The Emirates Group) decided to try a distinctly new approach by issuing a sukuk, or Islamic bond, with the backing of the United Kingdom’s Export Credits Guarantee Department. If successful, it would become the first sukuk certificate guaranteed by an export credit agency. It would also be the largest-ever debt capital markets offering in the aviation sector with a guarantee from an export credit agency. Surprisingly, the sukuk was not rated by any of the three major global credit rating agencies. Why was the sukuk issued by Emirates not assessed by a major credit agency? If it had been, what rating would it have received? Most importantly, what were the sukuk’s risks and how should such an innovative bond be priced?
A new analyst has been asked to forecast the upcoming dividends for Singapore Airlines Limited. However, unlike most dividend-paying firms, which typically maintain stable, transparent, and simple dividend policies, Singapore Airlines maintained an opaque, complex, and irregular pattern of dividends. Further, the company did not respond to requests for information about expected dividends or the company's dividend policy. The analyst decided to gather historical data about the company and its competitors to gain insights on Singapore Airlines’ dividend policy and to forecast its upcoming dividend.
Profit-making corporations returned cash to investors through dividends or share repurchases. Market participants referred to the fraction of the profits paid to shareholders in the form of dividends as the "payout ratio." However, a large number of firms have never paid a dividend. For instance, over the past decade, more than half of the listed firms in the United States neither paid a dividend nor repurchased shares. For example, only 20 per cent of firms on the Singapore Stock Exchange consistently paid dividends over the past decade, with similar proportions observed in both US and European stock markets. The percentage of dividend-paying firms plummeted to a record low of 17 per cent in 2000. In fact, most of the "new economy" firms such as Amazon, Facebook, and Google, reinvested their entire savings. This note describes rational dividend theories, behavioural dividend theories, and outlines the four categories of dividend strategies followed by firms.
A controlling shareholder of the NYSE-listed Chinese online gaming company Shanda Games has offered a buyout at USD6.90 per American Depository Share (ADS); each ADS consists of two ordinary shares. The offer provides a premium of 22 per cent to the stock’s Friday close. Throughout the previous year, Shanda Games’ ADS had typically traded in the range of USD2.74 to 6.45.<br><br>As Shanda Games’ independent directors attempt to evaluate the offer, they wonder: Should the shareholders accept it as it is? Should they ask for a higher price? Or should they look for the alternatives?
On October 9, 2013, Jos. A. Bank Clothiers Inc., a large U.S. retailer of men's tailored and casual clothing, footwear and accessories, made a hostile offer to buy its larger rival Men’s Wearhouse. The latter made a counter-offer on January 6, 2014 in what is known as a Pac-man defence — the prey turned predator. Jos. A. Bank responded by adopting a poison pill, announcing the planned acquisition of Eddie Bauer, an outdoor apparel retailer. What started out as a simple offer had turned into a contest with multiple counter-offers and the deployment of several takeover defences. How should Eminence Capital, a New York-based hedge fund and the largest shareholder in both firms, react? How should each firm respond to the latest offer on their respective tables?
Emirates Airline (EA) needs to fund the purchase of 30 new A380 aircraft. On March 11, 2013, EA announced plans to issue US$1 billion of Islamic bonds (sukuk) and $750 million of regular bonds. These bonds arguably share similar risks and seniority even though the sukuk bonds sold with a lower implied yield. This difference in pricing for securities with similar default risks seems at odds with conventional finance thinking. Against this backdrop, the EA treasury department must decide on the appropriate funding for this next batch of A380 airplanes.
Alibaba is the world’s largest online trading platform, with higher revenues than Amazon and eBay combined. Its 2012 syndicated loan was the first sizable loan for a Chinese technology company with few tangible assets. Creative loan covenants stated that the subsidiaries would repatriate 100 per cent of the distributable profits for debt service. The loan was partially used for the buyback of Yahoo!’s stake in Alibaba. In the agreement, Yahoo! would sell half of its stake back to Alibaba immediately and an additional 10 per cent during Alibaba’s IPO in the next few years, and divest the remainder sometime after that. Now, Alibaba thinks it is time to tap the debt market in order to pay off the $4 billion in loans it received in 2012 and to finish the payments owed to Yahoo! for the stock repurchase.