The Carlyle Group Inc. Stock Price, News & Analysis

bluebird bio (NASDAQ: BLUE) has announced a definitive agreement to be acquired by Carlyle and SK Capital Partners. Under the deal terms, stockholders will receive $3.00 per share in cash plus a contingent value right of $6.84 per share, payable if the company achieves $600 million in net sales within any 12-month period ending by December 31, 2027.

The transaction comes after bluebird's Board conducted a comprehensive review of strategic alternatives, meeting with over 70 potential investors. The Board determined this was the only viable solution following financial challenges and a third FDA denial of their priority review voucher, with the company at risk of defaulting on loan covenants.

David Meek, former CEO of Mirati Therapeutics and Ipsen, will become CEO upon closing. The deal, expected to close in first half of 2025, will take bluebird private and aims to scale their commercial delivery of gene therapies for sickle cell disease, β-thalassemia, and cerebral adrenoleukodystrophy.

Farmfront Group has entered into a strategic commercial partnership with BF International Best Fields Best Foods (BFI), investing €10 million for a minority stake. Through this five-year agreement, Farmfront becomes an exclusive supplier of pivot irrigation products in Algeria, Libya, and Senegal, and a preferred partner in other regions.

The partnership aims to support BF Group's international expansion and agro-industrial development in developing economies, particularly in Africa. Both companies target to develop farmland across fifteen countries, covering 150,000 hectares by 2027.

Farmfront, backed by Carlyle (NASDAQ: CG), combines irrigation providers OCMIS, RKD, Irrimec Group, and Otech. With headquarters in Milan and 450+ employees across 6 manufacturing sites in Italy, Spain, and France, it serves over 100 countries. BF Group, Italy's agro-industrial leader, manages over 30% of national agricultural land.

AdvanCell has successfully completed an oversubscribed US$112 million Series C financing round, co-led by SV Health Investors, Sanofi Ventures, Abingworth, and SymBiosis. The clinical-stage radiopharmaceutical company, founded in June 2019, has grown to include 60 team members and a 40,000-square-foot manufacturing facility.

The funding will support expansion of manufacturing capacity and accelerate clinical development of radionuclide therapies. The company is currently conducting the TheraPb Ph I/II dose escalation clinical trial of ADVC001 for metastatic prostate cancer, testing a Pb-212-based radionuclide treatment.

Following the financing, Jamil M. Beg, Christopher Gagliardi, and Bali Muralidhar have joined AdvanCell's Board of Directors. The company's focus on Targeted Alpha Therapies and scalable isotope supply aims to advance cancer treatment, particularly in prostate cancer and gastroenteropancreatic neuroendocrine tumours.

Entertainment 360, a leading talent management company, has announced receiving its first-ever outside investment from Carlyle (NASDAQ: CG). The strategic investment aims to support Entertainment 360's growth ambitions while maintaining its current board and leadership structure.

Founded in 2002, Entertainment 360 provides professional management services to actors, writers, directors, and showrunners, along with in-house development and production capabilities. The company's existing management emphasized that clients remain their primary focus, viewing the partnership as a means to deliver enhanced results in an evolving entertainment landscape.

Carlyle, which manages $447 billion in assets as of September 30, 2024, has deployed over $14 billion into sports, media, and entertainment sectors since 2017. Their Global Credit platform manages $194 billion in assets. The Raine Group and Venable LLP served as advisors for the transaction.

Stonepeak has announced a definitive agreement to acquire Forgital Group from Carlyle (NASDAQ: CG). Founded in 1873, Forgital is a leading manufacturer of advanced forged and machine-finished components for aerospace and industrial markets, specializing in forged and laminated metallic rolled rings across various materials.

The company operates nine facilities across Italy, France, and the United States, serving diverse end markets including aerospace, defense, space, power generation, and oil & gas. The transaction is expected to close in Q2 2025, subject to regulatory approvals.

Forgital's vertical integration spans the entire forged components value chain, from process engineering to assembly, final machining, and testing. The company is positioned to benefit from long-term aerospace end market demand.

StandardAero (NYSE: SARO) reported strong Q3 2024 results with revenue increasing 13.2% year-over-year to $1,244.6 million. Net Income reached $16.4 million with a 1.3% margin. Adjusted EBITDA grew 26.0% to $168.4 million, with margin expanding to 13.5%. The company completed a $1.7 billion IPO, using $1.2 billion net proceeds to reduce debt, expecting over $130 million in annual interest savings. Growth was driven by commercial aerospace and business aviation markets, up 20% and 15% respectively. The company also acquired Aero Turbine Inc. to expand component repair capabilities.

Sedgwick, a global provider of claims management and business solutions, has announced the closing of a $1B equity investment from Altas Partners. The deal includes new investments from existing investors Carlyle (NASDAQ: CG) and Stone Point Capital, with Carlyle maintaining its control position. CDPQ and Onex continue as minority shareholders. Following Altas' investment, Sedgwick's total enterprise value has reached $13.2 billion, up from $6.7 billion since Carlyle's initial 2018 investment. The company will remain independent and private, focusing on claims handling excellence and technological innovation.

Baxter International (NYSE:BAX) has declared a quarterly cash dividend of $0.17 per share of common stock, payable on Jan. 2, 2025, to stockholders of record as of Nov. 29, 2024. The indicated annual dividend rate is $0.68 per share. This new quarterly dividend rate is set in anticipation of the Kidney Care business segment divestiture to Carlyle, expected to close in late 2024 or early 2025. The dividend targets a payout ratio of approximately 25% of adjusted net income, aligning with peer companies. Baxter maintains its 93-year history of consistent dividend payments while balancing business reinvestment with shareholder returns.

Advance Auto Parts (NYSE: AAP) has completed the sale of Worldpac, Inc. to Carlyle (NASDAQ: CG) for $1.5 billion, with estimated net proceeds of $1.2 billion after taxes and transaction costs. The transaction, initially announced on August 22, 2024, aims to simplify AAP's business model and strengthen its balance sheet. The company will provide updated strategic priorities and financial objectives for its blended-box business during its third quarter 2024 earnings call on November 14, 2024.