If Akzo's bid were to fail, Henkel could try to buy National Starch on its own.
ECONOMIST: Akzo Nobel and Henkel move to buy ICI and divide the spoils
Akzo must still convince its shareholders, but the participation of Henkel should make this easier.
ECONOMIST: Akzo Nobel and Henkel move to buy ICI and divide the spoils
It would also make the fiercely independent Akzo much more expensive to take over.
ECONOMIST: Akzo Nobel and Henkel move to buy ICI and divide the spoils
It wrote a letter to Akzo's management before Henkel got involved to protest against the planned takeover.
ECONOMIST: Akzo Nobel and Henkel move to buy ICI and divide the spoils
Strategic Intelligence now gathers intelligence for about 1, 500 clients, among them Akzo Nobel, Oracle, Rio Tinto and Shell Chemicals.
Finally, Akzo's "value" range within the Glidden brand would fit well in Wal-Mart.
Another European company to step up in recent months has been Akzo Nobel.
These "microspheres" were made by a division of Akzo Nobel in the Netherlands.
ICI, the company that once symbolised British industry, became the target of a takeover bid from Akzo Nobel, a Dutch competitor.
Pfizer is also developing a second antipsychotic, asenapine, with Akzo Nobel (nasdaq: AKZOY - news - people ).
Once that happens, Nomura's Barker believes Akzo will either sell the American unit or combine it with another firm through a joint venture.
For the past year, Bayer has tried to marry its drug business to Akzo Nobel and others--but only if Bayer could keep control.
Akzo's shares dropped to around the 30 euro mark in the wake of the global credit crisis, but have been steadily increasing since then.
Once the company exits the U.S., she expects its global EBITDA margin to rise to 16% from 14%, raising the value of Akzo's shares by a quarter.
Akzo's Chief Executive, Hans Wijers, said during the company's second quarter results conference call last July that he wanted to make the company's money-losing U.S. Deco business profitable.
Moreover, the company has had a string of regulatory disappointments with medicines like indiplon, a sleeping pill, and more recently an antipsychotic that it was developing with Akzo Nobel.
Since Akzo would be able to supply Wal-Mart from its existing manufacturing capacity, Barker estimates that the gross margin on Akzo's budget brand decorative paint would be an impressive 30%.
Akzo said ICI would be "a highly attractive addition" to its coatings business and noted that its new offer represented a 40% premium to ICI's share price on 9 March.
But at least three of the research sites being shut down stand out: those that were originally part of Organon, the pharmaceutical-making arm of the Dutch chemicals giant Akzo Nobel.
Akzo earned 273 million euros in the second quarter, up 76% from a year earlier, and said in July that it was cautiously optimistic about its prospects for the rest of the year.
However, there has been speculation that any takeover of ICI by Akzo could attract the attention of competition watchdogs, as Dulux has 40% of the UK paint market while Akzo's Crown Paints has 14%.
Moreover, the company has had a string of regulatory disappointments with medicines like indiplon, a sleeping pill, and more recently an antipsychotic that it was developing with Akzo Nobel (nasdaq: AKZOY - news - people ).
Barker says Wal-Mart is swapping Sherwin for Akzo for three reasons: Akzo is probably supplying at a lower cost and Wal-Mart generally prefers more global suppliers--Sherwin has only 15% of its sales outside North America while Akzo has about 80%.
Shares of Akzo Nobel climbed by 3% to 42.60 euros on Wednesday after the Dutch paint maker announced that it had agreed to become Wal-Mart Stores' main supplier of interior and exterior paints at more than 3, 500 outlets in the United States.
Akzo, which makes the Dulux and Glidden paint brands, said the deal would "significantly boost" its market share, and while it did not give details on how it might affect profits, it did describe the profitability of the deal as "good" and better than its contract with Home Depot.
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