"Monsanto, a frequent target of antibiotechnology activists around the
world, now is under siege from a far more moneyed crowd.
"Wall Street portfolio managers and analysts are lobbying Monsanto
Chief Executive Officer Rober Shapiro to break up the St. Louis
crop-biotechnology and pharmaceutical. Currently, the company's market
value is about $24 billion. But analysts at PaineWebber, Sutro and JP
Morgan Securities, among others, have issued reports n recent weeks
concluding that selling off Monsanto parts could yield at least a 30%
premium over that.
"There is a huge inefficiency in the stock-- the sum of the parts is
worth far more than the current stock price," said Andrew Cash, an analyst
at PaineWebber. "I think Monsanto has to make some sort of decision about
what to do in a timely fashion."
"Still, as long as the stock remains below $40 a share, some Monsanto
insiders worry that the company is vulnerable to a hostile takeover by a
suitor interested only in busting it up. THE STOCK IS SO CHEAP NOW THAT THE
MARKET ISN'T PUTTING ANY VALUE ON MONSANTO'S CROP-BIOTECHNOLOGY TRAINTS, a
business some analysts figure is generated roughtly $400 million annuallyin
licensing fees. [emphasis in caps added]
"...
"'I've told Mr. Shapiro it's time to spin off Searle [Monsanto's
biotechnology division],' said a manager of mutual fund whose firm
currently owns more than one million shares and recently has been snapping
up Monsanto stock. "The whole controversy over crop biotechnology is
weighing down the stock,' said the manager.
"Releasing Searle would be a bitter pill for Mr. Shapiro, 61 years old.
Such a move WOULD SHATTER HIS DREAM OF USING BIOTECHNOLOGY TO STITCH
TOGETHER A NEW TYPE OF COMPANY.
"...
"...Monsanto's genetically engineered seeds are a big hit with US
farmers; half of the soybean fields being harvested this fall were grown
from seed containing a Monsanto gene.
"But the company is worried that the bio-food backlash in European
Union has effectively blocked the planting of genetically modified seeds on
its soil, closing what is potentially a huge market for Monsanto. And EU
import restrictions on genetically modified crops are frightening US
farmers who rely heavily on foreign markets to sell their crops. ... "
Peter
____________________________________
Peter Anderson
RecycleWorlds Consulting
4513 Vernon Blvd. Ste. 15
Madison, WI 53705-4964
Phone:(608) 231-1100/Fax: (608) 233-0011
E-mail:recycle@msn.fullfeed.com