The five foundations that billionaire Warren Buffett has pledged most of his $49 billion fortune to received their second annual gifts of Class B shares of Berkshire Hathaway Inc. on Monday. Buffett said in a news release that he had given 572,375 Berkshire shares to the foundations according the terms he announced in June 2006. Based on Friday’s closing price of $3,704.90, this year’s gift to charity was worth $2.12 billion.
Outage costs hurt Alcoa stock
Aluminum maker Alcoa Inc. on Monday said second-quarter profit slipped nearly 4 percent as outage costs at two smelters weighed down results. Net income fell to $715 million, or 81 cents per share, from $744 million, or 85 cents per share, for the same period last year. Alcoa, the first of the Dow Jones Industrials to report earnings this quarter, booked $36 million, or 4 cents per share, for curtailment costs at facilities in Alcoa, Tenn., and Rockdale, Texas.
Dannon maker pursues buyout
Groupe Danone SA, the maker of Dannon yogurt and Evian water, is strengthening its baby food business with a bid Monday to buy Royal Numico NV for $16.8 billion. The addition of Numico would make Danone one of the world’s largest players in the fast-growing $24 billion baby food industry, which experts expect to grow 25 percent by 2010. Groupe Danone, is offering $75 per share, a 44 percent premium.
Carl Icahn boosts offer for parts firm
Lear Corp. shareholders have a few more days and a slightly sweetened deal to ponder from a group led by billionaire investor Carl Icahn. The Icahn-controlled American Real Estate Partners LP agreed to increase its offer for Lear by about 3.5 percent to about $2.9 billion, and the automotive supplier said Monday it will delay the shareholder vote on the offer. American Real Estate Partners increased its price for shares of Lear common stock from $36 a share to $37.25 a share.
Parts maker Delphi dumps investor deal
Delphi Corp. said Monday it has scrapped its agreement with a group of investors that was going to kick in up to $3.4 billion to help the struggling auto parts maker emerge from bankruptcy protection. But a spokesman for the company said a revised agreement is expected later this month. The move comes after Delphi announced in April that one of the key investors, Cerberus Capital Management LP, was expected to pull out of the deal.
T-bill rates rise in Monday auction
The Treasury Department auctioned three-month bills at a discount rate of 4.815 percent, up from 4.79 percent last week. Six-month bills were auctioned at a discount rate of 4.85 percent, up from 4.81 percent last week. For a $10,000 bill, the three-month price was $9,878.29, while a six-month bill sold for $9,754.81. Separately, the Federal Reserve said Monday the average yield for one-year Treasury bills, a popular index for changing adjustable rate mortgages, rose to 4.99 percent last week from 4.94 percent the previous week.
From Herald news services
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