Husky Energy soars because investors love a failure
NEW YORK (Bloomberg) -- For Husky Energy Inc., it may not be the shots you make that matter so much as the ones you miss.
The Calgary-based oil company soared 16%, the most in almost 10 years, on Thursday after announcing that it would give up on a hostile $ 2 billion (C$2.75 billion) bid to buy MEG Energy Corp., which produces in Alberta’s oil sands.
Controlled by Hong Kong billionaire Li Ka-shing, Husky folded its cards after failing to get approval from two-thirds of shareholders. But it had won more than the 50% it needed to extend the offer by 10 days, according to people familiar.
Why not press its case? Husky cited “negative surprises” since it commenced its bid in October. Most notable among those is the government of Alberta’s decision to mandate oil production cuts to bring Western Canadian Select crude prices back from the dead. The company also said it will proceed with the potential sale of its gasoline station business and a refinery in British Columbia.
