Latest news with #Elliott-backed
Mint
21-04-2025
- Business
- Mint
Phillips 66 fires back at Elliott over Citgo conflict of interest amid board fight
(Adds Elliott response in paragraph 8, reflects letter was published in paragraphs 1-2) April 21 (Reuters) - Activist investor Elliott Investment Management should back down from its push to break up energy company Phillips 66 because it is conflicted from a separate effort to acquire one of the group's rivals, Phillips 66 said in a letter on Monday. The salvo is the latest in a bitter spat between Phillips 66 and Elliott that is due to come to a head at a shareholder meeting next month. In arguing against Elliott's break-up thesis in the letter, Phillips 66 said the investment firm has a conflict of interest due to its separate efforts to buy Citgo Petroleum. Citgo's parent company is being sold via a court-supervised auction. Last year, Elliott-backed Amber Energy was initially deemed the winner of the process, before creditor challenges forced the court to backtrack and launch a new sale. Amber Energy CEO Gregory Goff said on April 9 he had bought a position in Phillips 66 and backed Elliott's campaign. "This conflict is concerning because Amber Energy's executives are actively helping support Elliott's case to undermine Phillips 66's strategy," said Monday's letter from Phillips 66. Phillips 66 is one of the largest U.S. refiners, while Citgo is the seventh largest. In response to a request for comment, an Elliott spokesperson pointed to an April 10 regulatory filing. This stated that Goff's work alongside Elliott was "hidden from no one, and in no way represents a conflict of interest, diminishes the independence of his views or impairs his ability to help Phillips 66 become a stronger, more valuable company". Elliott has put forward four director nominees for the May 21 meeting as part of a campaign that has also included calling on Phillips 66 to sell or spin off its midstream business and consider divesting other assets to focus on its refining business and boost its share price. Elliott has said it has a more than $2.5 billion investment in Phillips 66. It is the second time the investment firm has pushed for change at Phillips 66, after a first effort ended in early 2024 with the addition of a new company board member blessed by Elliott. (Reporting by David French in New York; Editing by Leslie Adler and Jan Harvey) First Published: 21 Apr 2025, 09:31 PM IST
Reuters
01-04-2025
- Business
- Reuters
doValue on track to hit 2025 target for new business, could top it, CEO says
MILAN, April 1 (Reuters) - Italian bad loan manager doValue ( opens new tab has reached 80% of its targeted increase in gross loan portfolio for the current year, and it may be able to surpass it, CEO Manuela Franchi said on Tuesday. The Milan-listed company, whose shareholders include U.S. funds Elliott Investment Management, Fortress and Bain Capital Credit, said earlier on Tuesday it had secured a new contract in Cyprus to recover impaired loans worth around 350 million euros ($378 million) secured against nearly 1,000 properties. The deal, which follows a 700 million euro one last week with the National Bank of Greece ( opens new tab, brings to 6.5 billion euros the new business the company has secured so far this year, helped by its expansion into other southern European markets, including Spain. "We fully confirm our 2025 target of 8 billion euros in additional gross book value," Franchi said in comments to Reuters. "If the current trend continues, we don't rule out even surpassing it in the first part of the year." By shedding some 290 billion euros in soured loans since 2016 Italian banks turned the country into Europe's biggest market for these assets. However, new flows have dried up in recent years as lenders completed their clean-up and tightened lending. "We believe our geographical diversification will allow us to keep signing new contracts on a regular basis," Franchi said. The group has weathered the market slowdown thanks to selective acquisitions and a decision not to invest directly in loan portfolios, but to focus solely on managing them, she said. Europe's biggest loan collector Intrum ( opens new tab, pushed to the brink by debt costs as interest rates spiked, last year filed for U.S. creditor protection as it sought to restructure its debt. Unlike doValue, Intrum bought part of the loans it managed. Seeking to buttress profits as the industry reorganises after the boom years, doValue last year struck a cash-and-share deal to buy Elliott-backed Gardant, a smaller domestic rival. Cost savings through tie-ups and revenue diversification are seen as a way for the sector to shield profits. "We look with interest at continental Europe, an area where we are not present but which may offer growth opportunities given the slowing economy and our strong track record," Franchi said. ($1 = 0.9264 euros)
