From Business Spectator today morning....Billabong...

From Business Spectator today morning....

Billabong International, TPG Capital, Blackstone, Kohlberg Kravis Roberts

Billabong International founder Gordon Merchant might have said he wouldn’t sell the company for less than twice the amount the company was trading at before takeover speculation broke out, but that hasn’t stopped yet more potential suitors being called out. The Financial Times reports that Blackstone and Kohlberg Kravis Roberts are considering bids of their own. The KKR news isn’t necessarily new, because reports have previously indicated that it’s been talking to bankers, but the Blackstone news is.

The whole thing started when TPG Capital sent Billabong a proposal of $3 a share, a 68 per cent premium, valuing the company at $762 million. Billabong rejected the offer as it was already in the process of offloading half its Nixon accessories business to Triatlantic Capital Partners for $US285 million. It has now emerged that TPG was interested in the Nixon unit itself and received an information memorandum, The Australian reports.

But TPG’s $3 proposal was rejected; along with its subsequently improved $3.30 proposal that values Billabong at $838 million. Now, as more private equity firms reportedly count their pennies for a possible tilt, Merchant says they’ll need to front up at least $1 billion.