The Toronto-Dominion Bank confirmed Tuesday morning that it has agreed to buy Cowen Inc. in its latest U.S. takeover.
Under the terms of the deal, TD will pay US$1.3 billion, or US$39 per share, in cash to buy the New York-based investment bank. TD said it sold 28.4 million shares in The Charles Schwab Corp. to finance the transaction; as a result, TD said the deal will be neutral to its Common Equity Tier 1 capital ratio.
“Cowen is a leading independent dealer with a premier U.S. equities business and a strong, diversified investment bank that, when combined with TD Securities, will allow us to accelerate our strategic U.S. growth plans,” said TD President and Chief Executive Officer Bharat Masrani in a release.
The deal has been a source of speculation for weeks, after Bloomberg News reported in early July that talks were underway. The Wall Street Journal reported late Monday that a deal for more than US$1 billion could be announced as early as today.
Paul Harris, a partner and portfolio manager at Toronto-based Harris Douglas Asset Management, said the scale of TD’s investment banking ambitions in the U.S. will go a long way in determining the success of the Cowen deal.
“Is this really a deal to help their existing client base grow and help them with investment banking, and corporate finance, etcetera? Is that the goal? Or is the goal to say we want to be a big investment bank in the United States? And I think if that’s the case, I think that’ll be very difficult. … And so if you’re going to compete with Goldman (Sachs), I think this would be a very bad thing, or with Morgan Stanley or JP Morgan.”
Harris, whose firm owns shares in TD, added the Cowen deal would probably “look terrible” in a few years if TD has any intent of trying to compete with those Wall Street giants.
TD said the purchase of Cowen will “modestly” boost its fiscal 2023 adjusted earnings per share, and that it’s expecting up to US$450 million in pre-tax integration and retention costs over a three-year period. The transaction, which TD said is expected to close in the first quarter of next year, is subject to regulatory approvals in Canada and the United States, as well as a vote by Cowen shareholders.
“The reality is that by selling down its Schwab stake, [TD] is simply trading some U.S. wealth exposure for U.S. capital market exposure. The diversification inherent in that trade is not necessarily a bad thing, although we note that the market generally prefers wealth to capital markets especially coming off of a historic M&A cycle. On top of that, the track record of successful cross-border capital markets acquisitions is small, with retention of people being the key obstacle over the medium to long term,” wrote Meny Grauman, an analyst at Scotia Capital, in a note to clients.
Cowen is the second major U.S. takeover that TD has revealed this year. In February, the Canadian bank announced it agreed to buy Memphis-based First Horizon Corp. for US$13.4 billion. That deal is still awaiting final regulatory approvals.
TORONTO – Canada’s main stock index was up more than 100 points in late-morning trading, helped by strength in base metal and utility stocks, while U.S. stock markets were mixed.
The S&P/TSX composite index was up 103.40 points at 24,542.48.
In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was up 192.31 points at 42,932.73. The S&P 500 index was up 7.14 points at 5,822.40, while the Nasdaq composite was down 9.03 points at 18,306.56.
The Canadian dollar traded for 72.61 cents US compared with 72.44 cents US on Tuesday.
The November crude oil contract was down 71 cents at US$69.87 per barrel and the November natural gas contract was down eight cents at US$2.42 per mmBTU.
The December gold contract was up US$7.20 at US$2,686.10 an ounce and the December copper contract was up a penny at US$4.35 a pound.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 16, 2024.
TORONTO – Canada’s main stock index was up more than 200 points in late-morning trading, while U.S. stock markets were also headed higher.
The S&P/TSX composite index was up 205.86 points at 24,508.12.
In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was up 336.62 points at 42,790.74. The S&P 500 index was up 34.19 points at 5,814.24, while the Nasdaq composite was up 60.27 points at 18.342.32.
The Canadian dollar traded for 72.61 cents US compared with 72.71 cents US on Thursday.
The November crude oil contract was down 15 cents at US$75.70 per barrel and the November natural gas contract was down two cents at US$2.65 per mmBTU.
The December gold contract was down US$29.60 at US$2,668.90 an ounce and the December copper contract was up four cents at US$4.47 a pound.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 11, 2024.
TORONTO – Canada’s main stock index was little changed in late-morning trading as the financial sector fell, but energy and base metal stocks moved higher.
The S&P/TSX composite index was up 0.05 of a point at 24,224.95.
In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was down 94.31 points at 42,417.69. The S&P 500 index was down 10.91 points at 5,781.13, while the Nasdaq composite was down 29.59 points at 18,262.03.
The Canadian dollar traded for 72.71 cents US compared with 73.05 cents US on Wednesday.
The November crude oil contract was up US$1.69 at US$74.93 per barrel and the November natural gas contract was up a penny at US$2.67 per mmBTU.
The December gold contract was up US$14.70 at US$2,640.70 an ounce and the December copper contract was up two cents at US$4.42 a pound.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 10, 2024.
