The three Taylor brothers finally agreed to Abel's offer.

Now in 2001, Abel's offer can be said to be the most sincere offer.

Even among the many buyers interested in Sampura Energy, his offer is the most attractive.

In the end, Abel bought 59.64 million shares of Sampura Energy in the hands of the Taylor family for $78 a share.

This news was learned on the same day by Zixiu Martin, chairman of Sampura Energy.

"Fark Taylor! Fark Taylor! Fack! Fack!! ”

At the age of about sixty, he merged into one of the companies of Sampura Energy, the founder of Enova.

Zixiu Martin, the chairman of the merged Sampura Energy Company, was so angry that he almost smashed something in his office.

"BOSS, anger won't help." General Manager Delevin persuaded.

"I understand, I understand" Zixiu Martin knows that too.

“BOSS。 The next thing we should be thinking about is how to maintain our control of the company with Smith on the board. The general manager said.

Zixiu Martin is very sure of this.

"Although we directly hold the shares, it is only about 31.1%." Zisieu Martin confidently said:

"But shareholders are willing to trust us, and at least 30% of the voting rights are on our side! On the board, we're not afraid of Smith's 21%! ”

The general manager also smiled and nodded.

After all, Zixiu Martin has been running Sampura Energy for two years.

Under his leadership, the company performed well.

The annual dividends and dividends are also satisfactory.

What's more, he is one of the founders of the company.

The control of the company, as well as the encirclement of the company's shareholders, has been very successful.

"Suzu ~ Suzu ~ Suzu"

The phone rang in Zixiu Martin's office, and the chairman picked it up.

"Mr. Chairman, did Mr. Mayo's phone call be transferred?"

"Turn around."

Mayor is a minority shareholder in Sampura Energy.

He was also a friend of Zisiu Martin.

He was also one of his supporters at the shareholders' meeting.

"Hi ~ Mayor, good morning." Zisiu Martin said in a cheerful voice:

"How long has it been since we've played golf together? Last month, oh no, it was only once last October. When will I make another appointment? Old friend, I'm missing you a little. ”

"I'm sorry. Martin, I'm probably going to be busy next."

Across the street came the voice of shareholder Mayor, who said on the phone:

"I'm also making this call to tell you, Martin. My 9.09% stake in Sampura Energy has just been sold. ”

"Mayor!"

Zixiu Martin's voice couldn't help but get louder.

"I'm sorry. I don't want to do that, but Martin, the price is too good. ”

"Majo Jones, you're betraying, naked betrayal." Zisiu Martin hissed.

"Huh.. Say whatever you want. Goodbye, Zissiu Martin. The minority shareholder hung up.

"Smack!"

Zixiu Martin hung up the phone with all his might.

After two seconds, the phone rang again.

“Hello？” Zixiu Martin held back his anger.

The voice of the secretary was still on the phone, and the secretary seemed to hear the boss's anger.

She whispered hesitantly, "Boss, it's Mr. Maio's phone again." ”

"Answer."

Zixiu Martin said in a deep voice.

Soon the voice of the minority shareholder came from the phone again:

"For the sake of the good things we got along with in the past. Mr. Martin, let me conclude with one more piece of news. ”

"What's the news?"

"The news is that. In fact, two or three months ago, someone from Smith Capital contacted us. ”

"We?"

"That's right. That's us. Maio said on the other side of the phone:

"Like me, the shareholding ratio is no more, no less, the minority shareholders of Sampura Energy. We all got their offers. ”

Zisiu Martin's heart was already in a hurry, and he tried to make himself look calmer.

He continued: "Impossible. If that were the case, they should have told me a long time ago. ”

"No one is at odds with their own interests. No one. Minority shareholder Maio said:

"You should understand that, Martin. Hope you'll be okay next, goodbye. ”

Zixiu Martin didn't even say goodbye, and hung up the phone.

After hanging up, he immediately began to order General Manager Delevingne.

"Draven, contact the shareholders right away. Especially those small shareholders, right now! ”

Zixiu Martin exclaimed.

General Manager Delevingne, who was on the side and listened to the whole process, also knew what was going on.

He immediately agreed.

Then the chairman and general manager of Sampura Energy took action.

But before noon, they received one bad news after another.

More than ten small shareholders contacted by the two separately informed the two.

Just two days ago, a company called Ales Energy bought their shares.

"15%." Delevingne said with some trepidation: "With the 21% of the Taylor family, it's more than 36%!" ”

Zisiu Martin had a cold face, and just as he was about to speak, the secretary walked in.

Then the chairman and general manager of Sampura Energy heard the last thing they wanted to hear.

"Mr. Martin, Mr. Lexley. Just now, a Texas energy company announced that it holds a total of 36.3% of our company's shares. ”

"And for the secondary market and the primary market, we launched a general tender offer!"

Zixiu Martin, who is in his sixties, only feels that his eyes are dark.

That evening, some TV stations that paid attention to finance and economics published the news.

One example is News Channel's Fox News Channel, which is owned by News Corporation.

It has a featured program.

Fox News will do it every night after the news is over.

Create a one-hour special to analyze the important news that took place in the United States that day.

In this show, the good-looking young female host especially talked about Ales Energy's comprehensive offer to acquire Sampura Energy.

[Since last year, Alesvas and Electric Company in Texas have been buying Sampra stock. 】

[As of mid-March this year, the holding ratio has reached 6.26%. 】

[The day before yesterday, Alan Baker, special adviser to Ales Energy, and Abel Smith, chairman of Alex Energy, reached a deal with the Taylor family, the majority shareholder of Sampura Energy. 】

[Ales Energy acquired 21.07% of the shares of Sampura Energy held by the Taylor family in cash.]

[The total share capital held by Ales Energy immediately rose to more than 27%. 】

[But Mr. Smith is not content to be the second largest shareholder of Sampura Energy.] 】

[Ales Energy privately contacted many shareholders of Sampura Energy, and yesterday and today, it bought 9.5% of the shares of Sampura Energy in one go]

[A few days ago, the shareholding line of Ales Energy has exceeded the 36% offer line. 】

[Ales Energy, therefore, launched a general tender offer for Sampura Energy today. 】

[Sampura Energy is a $16.6 billion West Coast energy giant that provides nearly one-third of its electricity and more than a quarter of its natural gas in many parts of California, and serves more than 20 million people]

【. There is no doubt that the first battle of the year is about to take place in the stock market. 】

Under the Fox host's Lotus Tongue.

Many ordinary Americans who don't pay attention to this kind of thing.

Because one of the acquirers was Abel Smith, and after the host's remarks.

Let many ordinary Americans begin to pay attention to this news.

There are many people who pay attention to other newspapers and TV media.

In order to compete for sales and ratings, in order to compete for eyeballs.

Naturally, they hurriedly followed.

The next day, the Wall Street Journal, the largest newspaper in the United States that had previously initiated the second wave of the "Smith storm", also came down.

The Wall Street Journal analyzes this transaction from a more professional financial point of view, from the perspective of Wall Street.

The correspondent of this daily newspaper believes in the article.

Sampura Energy is a very low-key company.

It had never made any news before this year.

It has always been inconspicuous and watertight, because the performance is stable all year round, the scale does not decline or develop, there is no attention from securities analysts, it is neglected, and it cannot arouse the interest of investors.

But since November last year, the stock price has been rising.

Originally, the market capitalization fluctuated around $13 billion.

In just four months, the stock price has skyrocketed by 38% and is about to break through the 17 billion mark.

Obviously, at that time, it should be time for Abel Smith to start setting up in advance.

The Wall Street Journal is all down.

Financial experts from major media naturally couldn't bear it.

They began to study the business in full.

This made them realize that even if the stock price had risen so much.

Sampra's current market capitalization is still far from its net worth.

For example, Sampura Energy's market share in California is actually similar to that of another California Pacific Electric.

However, the market value of Pacific Electric in California is as high as $25 billion.

And Sampura Energy holds a large number of offshore oil exploration rights.

These marine exploration rights, if you don't find oil, it's okay to say.

If oil is found, $17 billion will never be the true value of Sampura Energy.

In addition, Sampura Energy is also actively exploring overseas markets.

Especially in South America, it has been with Argentina, Barra. Guy, Ulla. Enterprises in Guyana, Brazil and other countries have signed contracts for the transfer and sale of technology.

In addition, Sampura Energy has also signed long-term parity gas contracts with several companies on Maoxiong's side.

I signed it two years ago.

Two years ago, it happened to be the collapse of the hairy bear exchange rate and the default of the sovereign foreign debt, which was the most difficult time for them.

It was also a time when the global price of natural resources was low.

This allowed Sampura Energy to sign a contract at the time, and the price of natural gas was very low.

The low price of natural gas means that the cost of electricity is a little lower for a company that provides electricity.

Such a low-key and undervalued listed company was suddenly targeted by the "Financial Moses" this year.

Or Abel Smith, the first company to announce a general takeover bid.

This means that he values the company very much.

It means that Sampura Energy's current market capitalization simply does not correspond to its true value.

In this regard, the most authoritative local newspaper in California, the "Los Angeles Times" also commented:

[Alex Energy's chairman Abel Smith arrived in California on March 28. 】

[With his arrival, it is bound to take more threatening actions against Sampura Energy.] 】

[Whether he can bring Sampura Energy under his belt, the local financial authorities on the West Coast have given a positive judgment. 】

The New York Times is also paying attention, and they even sent people to interview leading figures related to Sampura Energy.

[Mr. Zixiu Martin, chairman of the board of directors of Sampura Energy, said that he is not afraid of any hostile takeover, and has contacted major banks to be ready to fight back against the 'invasion' of Ales Energy.] 】

[This newspaper also interviewed another founding family of Sampura Energy.] 】

[According to Mr. Musk Taylor, chairman of the Board of Directors of the Taylor Charitable Foundation, Zixiu Martin broke the promise first, and the sale of shares by the Taylor family is not a betrayal!] 】

The major newspapers appeared.

Of course, financial magazines will not be without the game.

Fortune magazine, as the media of the American elite, was also involved in the coverage of Sampura Energy News.

But Fortune magazine only mentioned Abel's acquisition of Sampura Energy.

The following content, as a front-page headline, actually stopped mentioning the recent hot Sampura Energy acquisition war.

Rather, put Abel Smith and Warren Buffett into the two.

With American Express CEO Kenneth Chernot.

The photos of the three people were hung on the headlines in a triangle, and the arrows of the three-way game were also drawn.

[Smith and Warren Buffett are acting in concert? 】

"Person acting in concert" is a term used in business transactions, acquisitions, and especially in the stock market.

Generally refers to the formal or informal agreement and tacit understanding, secretly cooperated, through either party to achieve the acquisition of a listed company.

All stock exchanges around the world, in the acquisition of a listed company, are in this way to prevent concerted actors.

The SFCs of various countries do not even look into written agreements when dealing with such lawsuits.

As long as the fact of concerted action is established, the takeover will be vetoed.

Concerted action is a covert operation.

Two or more parties have set their sights on a listed company.

In order to take control by surprise.

They will launch a bright acquirer and duel with the listed company in the open.

The rest of the partners fought in secret, and when they achieved absolute control, they suddenly attacked the listed company.

This kind of attack has already laid the foundation for victory, and listed companies have no chance of turning around at all.

It is precisely because of the great harm that all the CSRC's restraints on 'persons acting in concert' are also extremely strict, only looking at the facts, not the agreement.

Fortune's speculation that Abel and Buffett are acting in concert is not groundless, and they analyzed:

[As we all know, Warren has always been very bullish on American Express.] Because American Express Bank is the only service company in the Dow Jones Industrial Data constituent stock. 】

[Since a long time ago, Warren Buffett has been increasing his stake in American Express Bank. 】

[But recently, we have noticed that Smith Capital and Pacific Commercial Bank have become the de facto largest shareholders of Amex Bank]

[After that, Warren Buffett also suddenly began to increase his stake in American Express]

[Prior to this news release, the two parties already held a 36% stake in American Express]

[Whoever sells the stock to another person must be able to control American Express, which is very similar to the standard of "people acting in concert"]

[Therefore this newspaper. 】

This material of "Fortune" is poking holes.

The slightest carelessness will lead to Fortune itself in a crisis.

That's Warren Buffett and Smith, two plus a Soros.

The three have been rendered as the three oligarchs on Wall Street.

At the risk of offending two of the three oligarchs, Time Warner, the company behind Fortune magazine, still allowed it to be published.

What does a media giant do with this kind of thing?

Two reasons.

One is that Abel is also a media giant, or a catfish in the American media industry, which makes the entire American media industry panic.

Already a competitor.

Of course, there is not much to say about the competitors.

In addition, the management of American Express Bank has noticed a change in attitude towards Warren Buffett, who was very supportive of them in the past.

They are worried that if Warren Buffett really unites with Smith, then their group of high-level executives will really be finished.

Other American Express shareholders also don't want this premium company to be monopolized.

Therefore, with the help of some shareholders, Kenneth Chernot, CEO of American Express, personally stepped in to ask Fortune to send it out.

At a time like this, American Express is in a very precarious situation.

It doesn't have the power to stand up to Buffett and Smith at the same time.

It has to build momentum, and it has to use all the means at its disposal.

Otherwise, American Express will definitely change hands.

Of course.

"Fortune" didn't dare to really die completely.

An Abel Smith has a way to engage Time Warner in the capital market.

Now there's another Warren Buffett.

"Fortune" didn't dare to be too deeply implicated, and added a sentence in black font at the end:

[The views come from an authoritative expert in the financial industry and have nothing to do with this newspaper]

After this revelation was issued, Smith Capital reacted very quickly.

A press conference was held at 8 o'clock in the morning and broadcast live on AMC TV.

The newly appointed CEO of Smith Capital, David Mellon, personally served as a spokesperson, harshly criticizing Fortune for its distorted and bad remarks.

David opened his eyes and said nonsense:

Prior to this, the Company had never made a "concerted action" decision with Mr. Buffett. ”

"Fortune's groundless speculation has caused a bad impact on the reputation of the group, and we have issued a lawyer's letter, and Fortune must publicly apologize."

"As for the financier, we will resolve it directly through litigation."

Berkshire is a close second to Smith Capital.

Buffett's confidant, Munger, lashed out at Fortune as irresponsible slander.

Don't look at the two of them scolding, their attitude is very resolute.

But this kind of thing is actually the same thing that the United States did at the National Congress.

[I said you have laundry detergent, you really better have laundry detergent JPG]

It just so happened that Buffett and Abel really had "laundry".

Then "Fortune" dares to say that it is offending the two.

The number one horse boy of the two came out to say this.

So much so that "Fortune" finally had to apologize.

In the end, because of this incident, Robert, the impartial and impartial prosecutor, was prosecuted by the impartial prosecutor Robert on the charge of "framing and slandering" and sentenced to three months in prison.

At the end of March 2001, the US financial media was filled with gunsmoke and was also thrilling.

In the midst of this scolding war and public opinion, Sampura Energy's stock price has also risen sharply.

From $16.6 billion at the beginning, it has risen to $26.5 billion in just a few days.

It has surpassed another peer, that is, Pacific Electric, which also has a huge market in the California region and the West Coast region.