Neinor’s Aedas bid, Oracle cloud gains, Q4 fund returns

Neinor moves to complete Aedas takeover at higher offer price

Neinor Homes has taken the final regulatory step toward full control of Aedas Homes after Spain’s securities market commission (CNMV) authorized its mandatory tender offer for the remaining Aedas shares. The offer is priced at €24.00 per share, with an acceptance period running from 30 January to 27 February 2026 and settlement expected shortly after, subject to the terms set out in the offer documentation.

The mandatory bid follows Neinor’s voluntary tender offer completed in December 2025, through which it secured a 79.20% stake in Aedas. The new price represents a 12.5% premium to the €21.335 per share paid in the earlier offer and has been deemed an equitable price under applicable takeover rules, allowing minority shareholders to exit on improved terms.

Neinor’s CEO Borja García‑Egotxeaga said the move is consistent with the roadmap previously communicated to the market and ensures full compliance with CNMV requirements after the change of control. Deputy CEO and CFO Jordi Argemí described the authorization as a milestone that lets management focus on operating what the company calls Spain’s leading listed residential development platform while pursuing “disciplined growth in line with our strategy.”

Oracle capitalizes on AI demand as cloud becomes largest segment

Oracle is using its high‑performance cloud infrastructure to gain share in a rapidly growing market. The company has positioned itself for workloads such as artificial intelligence, aided by what it has described as cost‑effective, high‑performance computing. That helped attract a cloud deal with OpenAI valued at $300 billion last fall, contributing to a total reported backlog of $523 billion.

In the first six months of fiscal 2026, ended 30 November 2025, Oracle’s cloud segment generated more than $15 billion in revenue, a 31% year‑on‑year increase and the only division to grow at a double‑digit rate. Overall revenue reached $31 billion for the period, up 13% from a year earlier, with cloud now contributing 49% of total sales, making it Oracle’s largest business line.

Stronger cloud growth helped lift net income to $9.1 billion for the first half of fiscal 2026, compared with $6.1 billion a year before. Analysts cited in the article forecast Oracle’s revenue to rise 17% in fiscal 2026 and 29% in fiscal 2027. Oracle has taken on $108 billion in debt to fund cloud infrastructure expansion, against a book value of $30 billion, but its price‑to‑earnings multiple of 33 is close to the S&P 500 average of 31.

Institutional investors log steady gains as rates ease

Large U.S. institutional plans delivered solid returns in the final quarter of 2025 despite what Northern Trust described as complex economic cross‑currents. Its All Funds Over $100 Million universe, covering 365 plans with more than $1.4 trillion in assets, posted a 2.1% median return in the quarter and ended 2025 up 13.1%.

Public funds in the Northern Trust universe returned a median 1.9% in the quarter and 13.1% for the year, while foundations and endowments achieved a 2.5% median quarterly gain. Corporate ERISA plans returned 1.3% for the quarter and showed one‑, three‑ and five‑year median annualized returns of 11.1%, 8.0% and 2.3%, respectively.

U.S. equities were a key contributor, with Northern Trust’s U.S. equity program universe up 2.4% in the quarter and 15% for 2025, supported by strong third‑quarter corporate earnings and robust GDP growth. Non‑U.S. equity programs posted a 3.8% median quarterly return. Fixed income was positive but more modest: the U.S. fixed income universe returned 1.1% in the quarter as the Federal Reserve cut rates twice, bringing the federal funds rate to 3.50%–3.75%.

CEO share sale and loyalty push at smaller financial and infrastructure firms

Executive share dealing and customer‑focused initiatives also featured in recent corporate developments. At Coastal Financial, CEO Eric Sprink sold 12,402 shares in open‑market transactions on 21 and 22 January 2026, raising about $1.4 million, according to a Form 4 filing. The sale, executed under a Rule 10b5‑1 trading plan, reduced his direct holdings by 7.23% to 159,126 shares and continued a longer‑term reduction from more than 430,000 shares in early 2023.

The article noted that Sprink’s latest sale was larger than his historical median direct sale size but remained within his observed trading range, and no derivative or indirect transactions were reported. Coastal Financial’s stock has returned 24% over the past year and has delivered average annualized returns of 38.7% over five years and 27.8% over 10 years; the shares trade at about 33 times earnings.

Separately, Canadian toll‑road operator 407 ETR outlined efforts to expand usage while offering cost relief. The company said it plans to send at least 1.8 million drivers a promotional offer each month as part of a year‑round program aimed at saving customers money and easing congestion on alternate routes in the Greater Toronto Area. It reported that customers saved more than $200 million through driving offers in 2025, with average bill savings of 34%, and will launch a loyalty program this year enabling drivers to earn and redeem points for free trips.