Apollo Global Management is among several firms to have expressed interest in buying Arconic, the aeronautics parts-maker that was known as Alcoa before a 2016 breakup.

Why it's a big deal: Because Arconic was the subject of a very contentious proxy battle last year with Elliott Management, which resulted in the ouster of CEO Klaus Kleinfeld and a board revamp. But the CEO swap hasn't helped Arconic's stock price, which has fallen 36% so far this year — partially due to a tariff-fueled rise in aluminum prices.

Size: Arconic has a current market cap of around $8.3 billion, plus $6.4 billion in debt.

Bottom line: "Should there be a deal, it would be the latest in a string of double-digit-billion leveraged buyouts from the likes of Blackstone, KKR and Carlyle Group. LBOs are on pace for their busiest year by dollar volume since 2007, according to Dealogic." — Miriam Gottfried & Dana Cimilluca, WSJ