Mergers and Acquisitions

Darden Restaurants agreed to sell its Red Lobster chain to private equity firm Golden Gate Capital for $2.1 billion, as the restaurant operator pushes forward with plans to reshape its portfolio.

AstraZeneca's chief executive said his company's board would consider a compelling offer from Pfizer, despite turning down previous offers from the firm.

Valeant plans to unveil an improved offer for Botox maker Allergan later this month, as the Canadian drug company seeks to rally shareholder support for a buyout.

AT&T could seal a deal to acquire satellite television company DirecTV in the next two weeks, according to a report in The Wall Street Journal.

Mondelez agreed to merge its coffee business with D.E. Master Blenders, forming a new company that can better compete with Nestle and allowing Mondelez to focus on its snack portfolio.

Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold will sell its Eagle Ford Shale assets to Canada's Encana for $3.1 billion.

Merck agreed to sell its consumer-care unit to German pharmaceutical giant Bayer for $14.2 billion, continuing a flurry of healthcare deals.

AstraZeneca turned down a sweetened buyout offer of $106.4 billion from rival drug giant Pfizer, thwarting a move that would have created the world’s largest pharmaceutical company.

Botox-maker Allergan is reportedly hunting for a white knight after Valeant made a hostile buyout offer backed by Bill Ackman. 

The medical-device maker said it would acquire orthopedic products company Biomet in a deal valued at about $13.35 billion.

Pharmaceutical companies have been announcing deals at breakneck speeds this year in what analysts say is an attempt to hedge risk and hike profits.

Novartis said it will swap assets with GlaxoSmithKline and sell its animal health arm in a bid to simplify its business.

Post Holdings agreed to buy eggs and dairy producer Michael Foods for $2.45 billion, as the cereal maker looks to expand its breakfast portfolio.

Johnson Controls agreed to a $1.6 billion deal to buy Air Distribution Technologies, adding to the diversified manufacturer’s ventilation business.

Shares of SodaStream climbed 11% on a report it's huddling with large soft-drink producers over a minority stake sale.

Mars agreed to buy a significant portion of Procter and Gamble’s pet-food business for $2.9 billion in cash.

Hoping to raise cash to renovate 100-year-old Wrigley Field, the Ricketts family is debating selling shares of the Chicago Cubs to minority shareholders.

Jennifer Lopez-backed NUVOtv inked a $226 million deal on Friday to acquire Madison Square Garden’s Fuse cable-TV network, beating out hip-hop mogul Sean 'Diddy' Combs.

In a bid to narrow the gap with YouTube, Yahoo is reportedly in preliminary talks to acquire online-video service News Distribution Network for roughly $300 million.

Apache agreed to sell oil and natural gas assets in western Canada for $374 million, as the energy producer continues to shed pieces of its portfolio.