<BREAKFAST WITH THE FOOL>
Friday, November 6, 1998
"Love is the wisdom of the [F]ool and the folly of the wise." -- Samuel Johnson
Acquisitive Ad Agency
New York-based advertising conglomerate Interpublic Group of Companies <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: IPG)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: IPG)") end if %> has acquired marketing communications agency Gillespie in Lawrenceville, N.J., for an estimated price of $20 million, The New York Times reported. A formal announcement of the deal is expected today. Gillespie will operate under its existing name as part of Interpublic's McCann Relationship Marketing Worldwide network of agencies. The marketing conglomerate's clients include General Motors, MasterCard International, and Sprint. Hit ad campaigns in Interpublic's history include Coke's "It's the Real Thing" ads and Miller Lite ads.
The transaction is the latest purchase in a frenetic Madison Avenue shopping spree in which large ad agencies have been snapping up small and mid-sized independent outfits. Recent deals include Envoy Communications Group's acquisition of Hampel/Stefanides and MDC Communications' <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(Nasdaq: MDCAF)") else Response.Write("(Nasdaq: MDCAF)") end if %> purchase of majority interest in Margeotes/Fertitta & Partners. The Gillespie deal is the seventh acquisition for the McCann Relationship Marketing unit since its formation in January 1997.
Stan Rapp, chairman and CEO of McCann Relationship Marketing, told the Times the company identified Gillespie as the best agency still independent because "they bring considerable experience across a diverse number of business categories.... We are very carefully approaching and merging with agencies that will meet our strategic goals." One of Interpublic's goals is to be the top dog in the advertising industry.
News to Go
Food and drug retailer Safeway <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: SWY)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: SWY)") end if %> has been blessed by Standard & Poor's and will replace Chrysler <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: C)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: C)") end if %> in the S&P 500 Index after the close of trading next Thursday, when the merger between Daimler-Benz <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: DAI)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: DAI)") end if %> and Chrysler is expected to be finalized. S&P doesn't allow foreign companies in the popular index. Radio, TV, and cable broadcaster CBS <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: CBS)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: CBS)") end if %> will take Chrysler's place in the S&P 100.
Regional local phone company GTE <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: GTE)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: GTE)") end if %> announced plans to sell 1.6 million, or 7%, of its total domestic phone lines as it divests itself of non-core assets to raise up to $3 billion to invest in faster-growing businesses. GTE, which intends to merge with Bell Atlantic <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: BEL)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: BEL)") end if %>, said more than 200 prospective bidders have expressed interest in buying the phone lines.
Hoechst AG <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: HOE)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: HOE)") end if %> and Rhone-Poulenc SA <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: RP)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: RP)") end if %> have resumed their courtship to discuss a merger that would create a global pharmaceutical and agricultural products giant, The New York Times reported.
Biotech company Geron Corp. <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(Nasdaq: GERN)") else Response.Write("(Nasdaq: GERN)") end if %> announced that human embryonic stem cells -- unique cells capable of forming all the different cell types and tissues in the body -- have been successfully derived and maintained in culture for the first time by scientists at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. The research, which is explained in an article in the November 6 issue of Science, was supported by and is licensed to Geron. According to the leader of the research team, these human stem cells "hold great promise for use in transplantation medicine, drug discovery and development, and the study of human developmental biology."
Medical devices designer and maker Respironics Inc. <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(Nasdaq: RESP)") else Response.Write("(Nasdaq: RESP)") end if %> said it has received approval from the Food and Drug Administration to market its BiPAP Vision Ventilatory Support System, an economical alternative form of therapy for treating patients suffering from acute respiratory failure or respiratory insufficiency.
Telecommunications equipment maker Teltrend Inc. <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(Nasdaq: TLTN)") else Response.Write("(Nasdaq: TLTN)") end if %> announced late yesterday it expects fiscal first quarter earnings of $0.40 to $0.42 per share, above analysts' mean estimate of $0.34 and the highest projection of $0.37. The company also plans to buy back another $8 million in shares in addition to its recently completed repurchase of $8 million in shares, or 8% of the total outstanding stock.
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Yi-Hsin Chang (TMF Puck), Writer
Jennifer Silber (TMF Amused), Editor
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