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| Hey Insiders, Qatar invests in Washington Wizards, and we analyze 2023's first half of EV sales in the U.S. and who is leading the market. These stories, plus the 3D printing industry experiencing turmoil, are just some of wyou'llu'll findtoday'say's newsletter. ALSO: we want to hear from you! Tell us What emerging trends in tech support are and how they differ from traditional support models, and please say it here!! Shriram
p/Shriram | |
| 1 | | Qatar Investment Authority (QIA) has purchased a 5% share in Monumental Sports and Entertainment, which owns the Washington Wizards, Mystics, and Capitals. The $200M deal represents the first time a sovereign wealth fund has invested in a U.S. sports club and values Monumental Sports at $4.05B. More: - Ted Leonsis launched Monumental Sports, which owns local radio and television stations and esports teams.
- The QIA, which has over $450B in assets, decided to invest in Monumental because of the potential returns in the sports industry, particularly in the media and broadcasting rights, and as it sees this as a chance for expansion and alliances.
- The QIA does not obtain board representation through its investment in Monumental; instead, it does so as a purely financial transaction to gain exposure to a business with a wide range of assets.
- Qatar's sports investments include hosting the 2022 World Cup, owning Paris Saint-Germain, and acquiring Newcastle United in 2021.
Zoom Out: - A Senate subcommittee is scrutinizing the PGA Tour-LIV Golf merger amid concerns over Saudi funding and accusations of sportswashing, with Sen. Ron Johnson stating the deal was made to salvage the sport of golf.
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What the numbers say: With an expected 336,892 vehicles sold in the first half of the year, a 30% increase from the prior year, Tesla remains the top seller in the U.S. EV industry. With 38,457 EVs sold in the same period, Hyundai Motor, which includes Kia, surpassed General Motors (GM) in U.S. EV sales. According to Motor Intelligence, just five other firms have a market share of 1% and 4% in the U.S. Relevance: The efforts of established manufacturers to boost EV production and sales have had little effect on Tesla's market dominance. A 50% rise in EV sales compared to the first half of 2022 and the introduction of more competitors drive the EV market's overall growth. More about Brands: Despite lacking federal EV tax incentives, Hyundai has succeeded in the U.S. EV market. However, the legacy carmaker GM has been disappointed by the new EV vehicles' slowly ramping up production. Even though Ford and Volkswagen have made significant progress in EV sales, they still trail Tesla and Hyundai in market share. | | | |
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| 3 | | Leading 3D printing companies, including Stratasys, 3D Systems, Nano Dimension, and Desktop Metal, are having difficulty due to market issues, leading to financial losses and a lack of capital. They aggressively seek mergers and alliances, accompanied by legal fights and internal conflicts, to overcome these obstacles and survive. More: - Stratasys decided to buy Desktop Metal for $700M in its stock after the company's stock value plummeted.
- With a financial reserve of around $1B, Nano Dimension has made an unsolicited tender offer to gain control of Stratasys.
- Despite 3D Systems' persistent pursuit of Stratasys' acquisition, Stratasys has consistently declined their bids, prompting criticism from activist investor Donerail Group.
- Stratasys and Desktop Metal forecast that the market for 3D printing would reach $100B in 10 years, even though the combined annual sales of the four businesses on the list are now less than $2B.
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| 4 | | Charter Communications is introducing a new cable bundle structure that offers a cheaper TV alternative without regional sports channels to change consumer tastes as more people use streaming services. Regional sports networks, including the most extensive portfolio owned by Diamond Sports Group, have experienced difficulties and even insolvency as cord-cutting continues to influence the cable TV sector. More: - The third quarter will see the market-by-market introduction of Charter's two products, Spectrum Select Plus and Spectrum Select Signature.
- Regional sports networks and all sports programming are included in Spectrum Select Plus, while specific sports programming is excluded in Spectrum Select Signature for a lower price.
- Direct-to-consumer streaming apps for regional sports networks will be provided for free to customers who select the sports-lite option.
- The new model supports sports networks' efforts to offer streaming options while aiming to give non-sports consumers more flexibility and affordability.
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| 5 | | Canada will purchase unused COVID-19 vaccine doses from Novavax for $350M, sending the business's stock price soaring by roughly 30% on Monday. In addition, the new purchase agreement stipulates that Canada may stop the arrangement if Novavax cannot secure Canadian regulatory permission for vaccine production by December 2024. More: - Novavax now has reason to be hopeful after initially having concerns about its financial viability due to the payment from Canada.
- In May, Novavax outlined a cost-cutting strategy and a promising future, forecasting revenue of $1.4B to $1.6B in 2023.
- Novavax's shares are down 4% since the start of the year despite the recent gain in stock price, having lost approximately 90% of their value in 2022.
- In addition to competition from Moderna and Pfizer, Novavax still needs to deal with a $700M arbitration over a broken vaccine purchase agreement.
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| 6 | | Global banks, including Citi, HSBC, JPMorgan, and UBS, are helping to connect Syngenta Group's $9B IPO in Shanghai with foreign investors. This is a significant turning point for China's equity market, which local brokerages and banks have historically dominated as they compete for the interest of sovereign wealth funds in Europe and the Middle East. More: - Since 2019, when Syngenta's $43B acquisition by Sinochem Holdings took place, the company and its owner have been working on the IPO.
- The sponsors of Syngenta's IPO are China International Capital Corp. and BOC International Holdings.
- China's domestic market, which has suffered a slump in listings, would benefit from the IPO.
- Syngenta intends to use the money to fund research into agricultural technology, international acquisitions, debt reduction, corporate expansion, and improvements.
Zoom Out: - Following a hearing, Syngenta received approval from the Shanghai Exchange last month for its $9.1B initial public offering (IPO).
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- Astra, the producer of spacecraft engines, intends to delist from Nasdaq by undertaking a 1 to 15 reverse stock split and raising $65M through an "at the market" issue of ordinary shares.
- Despite the company's claim that the beverage is only for people over 18, Chuck Schumer wants the FDA to look into the marketing strategies and high caffeine content of Prime energy drink because he feels they are harmful to children and teenagers.
- The New York Times will no longer have a sports division and will instead rely on The Athletic, a publication it bought last year, to cover games, athletes, and leagues.
- Nestlé is considering selling its peanut allergy pill, Palforzia, to Stallergenes, as the medication has not met expectations since Nestlé acquired its maker in a $2.6B deal in 2020.
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INSIDE BUSINESS LEADERBOARD (7 DAYS) |
 | Freelance Writer | | Shriram is pursuing Master’s in Business with Marketing at Warwick Business School. He worked as a Senior Consultant in Tech and Political Consultancies before his Masters. He is passionate about Tech, Marketing, Strategy, Anthropology and Politics. He is also the Postgraduate Ambassador for Warwick Business School. | | This newsletter was edited by Aaron Crutchfield | |
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