Mike Armstrong, Inquirer Columnist
A little free-association: I say, "December."
You say, "Holidays, gift giving, Rudolph and the Grinch."
But really, who has time for good cheer when there are only four weeks left in the year? There must be corporate mergers, contracts and financings to get done, and not much midnight oil left to burn.
Mike Armstrong, Inquirer Columnist
Berwyn-based TE Connectivity has offered to buy Deutsch Group SAS for 1.55 billion euros, or about $2.06 billion.
Most of the wire stories call TE Connectivity a Swiss company, which is correct to a point. But TE Connectivity CEO Tom Lynch and his top management team run the Switzerland-domiciled company from Chester County.
Even TE's recently filed annual report lists its principal offices in Berwyn "in a facility that we rent."
But I digress.
Mike Armstrong, Inquirer Columnist
A Russian vodka company has acquired a 9.9 percent stake in Mount Laurel-based Central European Distribution, one of the biggest vodka producers in Poland, according to Reuters.
Russian Standard Vodka acquired 7.2 million shares between Nov. 15 and 21, paying a total of $25.4 million, according to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
That makes the second major ownership stake acquired by an outsider in recent months. Investor Mark Kaufman reported a 9.6 percent stake in the financially ailing Central European.
Mike Armstrong, Inquirer Columnist
Is it really necessary for Pennsylvania Gov. Corbett to form a public-private council on manufacturing?
Probably not, and I doubt he'll be counting the days until he can read the report that the 23-member panel, announced on Nov. 21, will cobble together during 2012.
In fact, you and I could probably toss off the highlights right now: lower taxes on manufacturers, reduced regulation, more support for exporting, lower energy costs, new incentives for research and development, and renewed emphasis on math and science education.
And really, isn't that most of what businesspeople who aren't manufacturers want anyway?
Mike Armstrong, Inquirer Columnist
Campbell Soup's new CEO Denise Morrison warned earlier that fiscal 2012 would be a "transition year."
On Tuesday, the Camden food processor announced first-quarter results that showed sales declined 1 percent to $2.16 billion. Net income was down 5 percent at $265 million, while earnings per share were flat at 82 cents per share, for the quarter ended Oct. 30.
Shares of the 142-year-old company were down 6 percent, or $2.18, to $31.44 shortly before noon.
U.S. soup sales were down 4 percent. The company said lower volumes were "partly offset" by higher prices. Sales of condensed soups -- the kind where you add a can of water -- were down 4 percent, while ready-to-serve soup sales were down 9 percent.
Mike Armstrong, Inquirer Columnist
Horsham-based Toll Bros. has acquired CamWest Development, which it says was one of the biggest privately held home builders in the Pacific Northwest.
The amount of cash that traded hands was not disclosed by Toll, the luxury home builder. CamWest houses typically sell from the mid-$300,000s to the $700,000s, according to Toll. The 22-year-old CamWest expects to deliver about 180 homes in the Seattle area in 2011, generating revenues of about $90 million.
Earlier this month, Toll released preliminary results of $1.48 billion in revenues for its fiscal year 2011, which ended Oct. 31. It also delivered 2,611 units. (Final results are due out Dec. 6.)
Mike Armstrong, Inquirer Columnist
I have noted in other columns that I am a notoriously bad shopper. It's not that I don't know how to price compare. I do it to such a degree that I wind up rarely making a purchase.
That's why, in theory, shopping over the Internet should appeal to me. Price discovery is a click away, there are always many choices, and I don't have to leave the house.
However, I really haven't bought much online over the years. I remain a window shopper, usually talking myself out of many purchases that I sort of wanted, but certainly didn't need.
Still, the United States is gearing up for its annual holiday shopping binge, as the catalogs, e-mail coupons and Christmas carol commercials remind me. Judging by the trends in the U.S. Census Bureau's quarterly retail e-commerce sales, more than 5 percent of all retail sales in the fourth quarter will occur online.
Mike Armstrong, Inquirer Columnist
Layoffs at ConocoPhillips' Trainer refinery, which is in the process of being shut down, will occur during the last two weeks of January 2012.
That's according to a filing with the Pennsylvania Department of Labor & Industry.
In all, 409 workers will lose their jobs when ConocoPhillips permanently closes the Delaware County refinery it has owned since 2002. That refinery can process up to 185,000 barrels of crude oil per day, but it is one of several that the oil company has targeted for closure.
Mike Armstrong, Inquirer Columnist
Tengion Inc., one of the most innovative life-sciences companies to call the Philadelphia region home, is in full restructuring mode.
When it is done, the company will have far more presence in North Carolina than in Montgomery County where its corporate headquarters has been located since its founding.
Tengion said it will cut 30 employees, or about 58 percent of its workforce. All research and development functions will be moved to its Winston-Salem, N.C. location.
Mike Armstrong, Inquirer Columnist
The Parsippany, N.J. company that restarted the Delaware City oil refinery earlier this year wants to become a public company.
PBF Energy Inc. has filed documents with the Securities and Exchange Commission for a possible initial public offering. That registration statement does not list how many shares PBF is looking to sell or their price range.
The privately held PBF's primary financial backers have been the private-equity firms Blackstone Group and First Reserve Corp. since its formation in March 2008.
Mike Armstrong blogs about Philadelphia corporations and business-related topics. Contact him at 215-854-2980.
Reach Mike at marmstrong@phillynews.com.
