Steel Sector Sees Flurry of Activity on M&A

A lot of steel names are higher today following Russian steel maker Evraz Group's deal to buy Oregon Steel Mills (NYSE: OS). The buyout also comes on the heels of reports Friday that Russia's biggest steelmaker OAO Severstal wants to buy U.S. Steel Corp. (NYSE: X). The buyout activity in the sector has been heavy for some time.

Other steel names: Nucor (NYSE: NUE), AK Steel (NYSE: AKS), Allegheny Tech (NYSE: ATI), Carpenter Technology (NYSE: CRS), Steel Dynamics (Nasdaq: STLD), Chaparral Steel (Nasdaq: CHAP), Companhia Siderurgica Nacional (NYSE: SID), IPSCO Inc. (NYSE: IPS), Mittal Steel (NYSE: MT), Reliance Steel & Aluminum (NYSE: RS).

Merger Monday

Merger Monday:

- Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc. (NYSE: FCX) and Phelps Dodge Corporation (NYSE: PD) have signed a definitive merger agreement under which FCX will acquire Phelps Dodge for approximately $25.9 billion in cash and stock, creating the world's largest publicly traded copper company.

- Equity Office Properties Trust (NYSE: EOP) announced that it has signed a definitive merger agreement to be acquired by Blackstone Real Estate Partners, an affiliate of The Blackstone Group, in a transaction valued at approximately $36 billion.

- Evraz Group S.A. and Oregon Steel Mills (NYSE: OS) announced that they have signed a definitive agreement under which Evraz will acquire Oregon Steel for $63.25 per share, or an aggregate price of approximately $2.3 billion. NOTE: Watch other steel names X, AKS

- Actelion Ltd announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire CoTherix, Inc. (Nasdaq: CTRX) for $13.50 per share. NOTE: More biotech M&A

- The Nasdaq Stock Market Inc. (Nasdaq: NDAQ) made an offer to buy the rest of the London Stock Exchange PLC. The Ordinary Offer is in cash at 1,243 pence per LSE Ordinary Share, valuing the entire issued ordinary share capital of LSE at approximately GBP 2.7 billion and represents an enterprise value of approximately GBP 2.9 billion.