D&M Rumor-Fest: Who’s Next?

Private-equity companies Bain Capital and Advantage Partners are the latest companies said to be interested in buying the 49 percent stake in D&M Holdings owned by RHJ International, according to reports from Reuters and Bloomberg quoting anonymous sources. Reports also contend that Merrill Lynch, in partnership with a major retailer outside Japan, is also interested.

That follows reports that Harman International has also been poking its nose into D&M’s books. Now that I can understand. Here’s an opportunity to peek into a competitor’s books. But what do private investment companies see in a group of companies invested in a difficult home audio market and in OEM car audio at a time when auto sales are falling and the world economy is treading water?

A good price?

D&M Holdings is principally owned by RHJI and Philips, which owns 12 percent of the shares of the publicly traded company.