Toshiba Corp (6502.T), the ailing Japanese conglomerate weighing strategic options, said it has received eight preliminary approaches to take it private, as well as two suggestions for capital alliances that would allow it to stay publicly traded.
The report comes amid recent indications that Toshiba, which has long been at odds with its activist shareholder base, is becoming more amenable to requests from international hedge fund investors to take the company private.
It appointed Akihiro Watanabe, an executive from Houlihan Lokey, a boutique U.S. investment bank, as chairman of the board and two activist shareholders as outside directors last month.
“We are encouraged by the multiple proposals as we feel they reflect big expectations about Toshiba’s potential,” Chief Executive Taro Shimada told a briefing on Thursday where he also unveiled bullish new earnings targets as part of an updated business strategy.
Toshiba, which has been plagued by accounting and governance issues since 2015, formed a special committee in April to seek solutions after shareholders rejected a management-backed restructuring plan. Monday was the deadline for non-binding proposals.
After evaluating finance arrangements and the feasibility of the proposals, the business said it will pick potential investors to be offered due diligence chances after its annual shareholders’ meeting on June 28.
Toshiba represents “a big potential deal” and its activist shareholders “are highly motivated so it is worth a look for any large PE funds,” said LightStream Research analyst Mio Kato, who publishes on Smartkarma.
“It hasn’t even gotten to due diligence yet so there isn’t much reason to not give it a look.”
The conglomerate did not identify any of the potential investors or specify how many were from outside the United States. KKR & Co Inc (KKR.N), Blackstone Inc (BX.N), Bain Capital, Brookfield Asset Management (Bama. too), MBK Partners, Apollo Global Management, and CVC Capital Partners, according to persons familiar with the subject, are are are were exploring bids.
domestic funds like Japan Investment Corp, Japan Industrial Partners, and Polaris Capital Group were considering bidding on Toshiba
Because several of Toshiba’s main businesses, like defense equipment and nuclear power, are viewed as strategically crucial to the Japanese government, the participation of local money is seen as critical.
Takayuki Kobayashi, Japan’s economic security minister, has stated that the government will not prevent foreign investors from purchasing industrial behemoths if they follow regulations governing the management of sensitive technology.
Toshiba also stated that it anticipates operating profit to more than quadruple to 360 billion yen ($2.8 billion) in the fiscal year ending March 2026, a figure it hopes to use as a starting point for conversations with possible investors.
Its goals are to improve data-related services, power management chip production, and research on next-generation nuclear power reactors. According to Shimada, the plan did not account for whether the company would remain publicly traded or no
Shimada, who took over in March, has also changed the company’s stance on some units. He added Toshiba TEC’s (6588.T) point-of-sale systems, as well as Toshiba’s elevators and lighting businesses, are now deemed crucial to growth rather than non-core.
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