Leucadia National
 | |
| Public | |
| Traded as |
NYSE: LUK S&P 500 Component |
| Industry | Conglomerate |
| Founder |
Ian M. Cumming Joseph S. Steinberg |
| Headquarters |
520 Madison Ave New York, New York, U.S. |
Area served | Worldwide |
Key people |
Richard B. Handler (CEO) Brian P. Friedman (President) Joseph S. Steinberg (Chairman) |
| Revenue |
 US$ 10.429 billion (2013)[1] |
|
US$ 1,179.8 million (2013) | |
|
US$ 369.2 million (2013) | |
| Total assets |
US$ 47.8 billion (2013) |
| Total equity |
US$ 10.2 billion (2013)[2] |
Number of employees | 14,647 (Leucadia and consolidated subsidiaries) |
| Website | leucadia.com |
Leucadia National Corporation is an American holding company that, through its subsidiaries, engages in mining & drilling services, telecommunications, healthcare services, manufacturing, banking and lending, real estate, and winery businesses with a market cap of about $8.0 billion as of June 15, 2011. Largest current investments include Jefferies. The company is sometimes called a "baby Berkshire Hathaway" for the wide range of its holdings.[3]
History
Leucadia executives Ian Cumming and Joseph S. Steinberg both graduated in the same Harvard Business School Class of 1970. They joined Leucadia around 1979. Ian Cumming (a Vancouver native) and Joseph Steinberg each own about 13% of Leucadia's shares.[4]
Leucadia is headquartered in New York City, but has additional offices in Salt Lake City, Utah. The company's name comes from the seaside town in Southern California and was chosen randomly after several other choices were rejected during the incorporation process. Cumming and Steinberg spotted the sign along the freeway and suggested it as an alternative.
Leucadia's highest profile move as of 2005 was a bid in 2004 to acquire 50 percent of telecommunications company MCI's common stock. However, after MCI received higher bids from other companies, Leucadia withdrew from the bidding process.[5]
Subsidiaries and investments
- Financial Services
- Jefferies Group
- Berkadia Commercial Mortgage (50/50 joint venture with Berkshire Hathaway)
- HomeFed (65% ownership)
- FXCM (January 2015 loan)[6]
- Merchant Banking
- National Beef Packing (78.9% ownership)
- HRG Group (23%)
- Vitesse Energy (96%)
- Juneau Energy (98%)
- Garcadia Holdings (Joint venture with Ken Garff Automotive Group)
- Linkem (55%)
- Conwed Plastics (100%)
- Idaho Timber (100%)
Merger with the Jefferies Group
On November 12, 2012, Jefferies Group announced its merger with Leucadia, its largest shareholder. Jefferies was valued at $3.8 billion at the time of the acquisition. Jefferies remains independent and is the largest operating company within Leucadia. On March 1, 2013, Leucadia bought the Jefferies Group for $3.6 billion. The company’s founders, Ian M. Cumming and Joseph S. Steinberg, stepped down from their management roles after the merger, with Mr. Steinberg staying on as chairman. The number of directors also increased to 11 from eight, including the addition of nine new directors. Richard B. Handler became chief executive of Leucadia, while remaining chief executive of Jefferies.
Other Investments
- WMAC Investment Corp., a subsidiary of Leucadia, is the largest backer of Pershing Square Capital Management L.P., a Delaware-incorporated investment partnership. William Ackman is the founder of the $10 billion+ activist hedge fund Pershing Square. The Fund had 20%+ returns over the past 9 years.
- In June 2007, Leucadia (through a subsidiary) purchased most of the assets of ResortQuest International, Inc., a vacation rental property management company headquartered in Fort Walton Beach, Florida, from Gaylord Entertainment Company.
- In December 2011, National Beef Packing Company, LLC and its major owner U.S. Premium Beef, LLC (USPB) announced the company’s majority owners have entered into a Membership Interest Purchase Agreement with Leucadia National Corporation under which Leucadia will acquire approximately 79 percent of the outstanding ownership interests in National Beef.
- Leucadia (through a subsidiary) was an investor in controversial syngas plants which utilize coal gasification technology through a Department of Energy loan guarantee. A $2.6 billion plant was planned in Indiana, while similar proposals in Illinois have met resistance from state regulators.[7][8] The project in Indiana was ultimately panned by the state legislature in 2013.[9]
- In January 2015, Leucadia granted a loan to FXCM after it became insolvent due to a sharp rise in the CHF currency after the Swiss Bank stopped pegging its currency to the Euro. The loan value is estimated to be at $300 Million.[10]
References
* Leucadia National Corporation Annual Report 2007
- ↑ Leucadia National Corporation 10-k for the 12 months ended 12/31/13, filed 2/28/14 http://leucadia.com/10k_posting_docs/LNC_2013_Form_10-K.pdf
- ↑ Leucadia National Corporation 10-k filed 2/28/14 Page 70 (F2) http://leucadia.com/10k_posting_docs/LNC_2013_Form_10-K.pdf
- ↑ Alden, William (April 2, 2014). "Handler, Leucadia’s Chief, Takes Pay Cut in New Role". The New York Times.
- ↑ "MCI Says Leucadia Seeks to Buy Controlling Stake (Update7) - Bloomberg". quote.bloomberg.com. 2004-07-12. Retrieved 2015-04-24.
- ↑ "(Press Release) Verizon Enterprise News Center - Home - About Verizon Enterprise Solutions". About Verizon Enterprise Solutions. Retrieved 2015-04-24.
- ↑ Faux, Zeke (2015-01-20). "FXCM Stock Plunges as Bailout Allows Leucadia to Force Sale". Bloomberg.com. Retrieved 2015-04-24.
- ↑ Mitch Daniels#Energy
- ↑ Murtaugh, Dan (January 12, 2012). "Illinois ruling hurts Leucadia synthetic gas proposal". Press-Register. Retrieved 2012-02-15.
- ↑ Bradner, Eric (2013-04-27). "BRADNER: Rockport plant will never be". Retrieved 2013-04-29.
- ↑ "(Press Release) Leucadia National Corporation and FXCM Announce $300 Million Financing to Permit FXCM to Continue Normal Operations (NYSE:FXCM)". ir.fxcm.com. Retrieved 2015-04-24.