Posted on 08/03/2005 5:01:24 AM PDT by RayChuang88
FRANKFURT (Reuters) - German sporting goods maker Adidas-Salomon is buying U.S. rival Reebok (RBK) in a 3.1 billion euro ($3.8 billion) deal to expand its reach in Nike's (NKE) home market.
Shares in Reebok surged 32 percent to $58.17 in Germany, while Adidas was up 6 percent at 156.40 euros at 1005 GMT, after it painted a bright outlook for the merged group.
Adidas shares had initially dropped 4 percent on the news, as it said it would help fund the takeover with equity and as some analysts questioned the deal's benefits.
Adidas, the number two in the sporting goods industry behind Nike, said on Wednesday it was buying the outstanding shares of No. 3 player Reebok for $59 per share in cash, a 34 percent premium to Reebok's closing share price on Tuesday.
(Excerpt) Read more at finance.myway.com ...
Funny how that works. Adidas ceded much of the U.S. market to Nike, now it will buy Nike to get it back. I wonder if it will choke on the bone.
I'm sticking to New Balance.
you need more coffee....(g)they ain't buying NIke..
Yikes. Looks like I need something stronger in my eye-opener.
$60 is cheap for decent running shoes..
I paid a lot for mine. The big thing is that New Balance makes shoes for feet with different shapes, not just sizes, and some of us need that. And rollover bars.
Well, the original price for that pair of shoes was US$85--and it wasn't even top of the line for New Balance, either!
NB makes a great shoe..been running in them for years..but IMHO, about the only difference between a $60 pair of NB and a $140 pair, is...ta da..$80...I run about 20-25 miles a week..and get a new pair every 3 months..The average runner would be far better served buying a much cheaper pair and replacing it twice as often..
Maybe I'm a sucker for marketing, but I do believe that price matters to some extent. About a year ago, I purchased the NB 620, which is a cross-trianing shoe, for about $50. To this day, I've never really been comfortable in them. A couple of weeks ago, I brought the NB 727 for about $80, which are marketed as walking/hiking shoes. They are so comfortable that I brought a second set just for the gym and cross-training. Same size, different price, different style, world of difference. Perhaps we're both right in that the difference between an $85 shoe and $140 shoe is the price, and the difference between a $50 show and $80 shoe is fit and comfort.
New Balance is the only major sports shoe manufacturer with a significant US production commitment; for my next athletic shoe I probably go to the Skowhegan Maine factory store.
I bought RBK in spring '04 at $36. Sadly it was only 25 shares, but fortunately it was not less than 25 shares. I bought it as a value play - - many value companies are candidates for acquisition.
I have my athletic shoes custom made. Hersey Custom Running Shoes www.herseycustomshoe.com has been doing a good job for many years. I am a racewalker and for me the difference of a custom made shoe is very important. Anybody that has problems with getting shoes that fit or are comfortable should consider this option. You will spend a couple hundred for the shoes but they can be resoled for a fraction of that, spreading the cost out.
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