Rangeley Capital Podcast

Dell is looking to go public by performing a reverse merger into their VMW tracking stock, DVMT. The headline of the offer says it's worth $109/DVMT share, but is that really the fair value of what Dell's offering? Is there a chance for minority shareholders to get a better deal?

With Disney (DIS) receiving DOJ approval for their Fox (FOX) deal while Comcast (CMCSA) mulls coming back with a higher offer, one of the largest media deals and bidding wars in history is heating up. Chris and Andrew discuss why Comcast and Disney are so interested in Fox, what's likely to happen next, and who will ultimately catch the Fox.

Berkshire Hathaway (BRK) named Greg Abel and Ajit Jain as Vice-Chairmen today, setting them as the front runners to succeed Warren Buffett as CEO. Who's the favorite and what's it mean for investors? 

After, Chris and Andrew peer into their crystal balls and try to guess some of the themes that will drive markets in 2018.

After a relatively quiet 2017, Berkshire's elephant gun is fully loaded. Andrew and Chris discuss the most likely deals he'll be pursuing in 2018. And after two big deals in the food space, they discuss what's driving consolidation and who the most likely targets going forward are.

Andrew and Chris talk about the rumored mega-merger between Disney (DIS) and Fox (FOX). Why is Fox, a traditional media empire builder, looking to sell? Why is Disney looking to buy? Later, they talk about some unintended (and intended) consequences of the Republican tax plan.

The Department of Justice is trying to block the AT&T (T) acquisition of Time Warner (TWX) in a move that's shocked the business world. Why is the DoJ suing? Who has the stronger hand, AT&T or the DoJ? And what role is politics / Donald Trump's feud with CNN playing in the suit?

Amazon buys the rights to the Lord of the Rings prequel show for a whopping $250m, a deal one industry observer called "insane." And the SEC comes out with a "forceful" statement saying celebrities who endorse stock sales and coin offerings without disclosing pay may be breaking the law.

The WSJ's "Morningstar mirage" article is sending shockwaves through the mutual fund industry and Morningstar's (MORN) stock, but does it tell the whole story?

A new CEO is in charge at GE (GE), and after reporting awful Q3 earnings he is cutting corporate jets and taking names. Will it have an impact or is it too little too late to boost the struggling conglomerate?

Procter & Gamble (PG) beats Nelson Peltz in the most costly proxy battle of all time. Netflix (NFLX) is planning on spending a mind-boggling $8B on original content next year.

With competition looming from Amazon's (AMZN) Whole Foods purchase, Kroger (KR) is selling off their convenience stores and looking to cut costs to stay competitive. Will it be enough? And the WSJ notes that spinoffs have outperformed the market over the past few years; what's driving that out performance and will it continue going forward?