(Adds UniCredit, Covivio Hotels, Swiss Re , Bloomin' Brands, Total )
Nov 6 (Reuters) - The following bids, mergers, acquisitions and disposals were reported by 2100 GMT on Wednesday:
** Italy's largest bank UniCredit CRDI.MI said it had started the sale of its 8.4% stake in investment bank Mediobanca MDBI.MI , in a move that could shake up the country's financial landscape. Real estate group Covivio Hotels COVH.PA CVO.PA is set to buy a portfolio of European luxury hotels from private equity group Varde, two sources close to the matter said. Swiss Re SRENH.S is looking at buying a stake in China Pacific Insurance Co 601601.SS via a primary offering of the Chinese company's securities, the Swiss re-insurer said. Outback Steakhouse owner Bloomin' Brands Inc BLMN.O said it would explore strategic options, including a sale, two months after activist investor Jana Partners disclosed plans to push for changes at the company. Total TOTF.PA is seeking to sell its 12.5% stake in a major deepwater oilfield off the coast of Nigeria, industry and banking sources said, in an effort to adjust the energy company's Africa portfolio amid a broad expansion. German supplier of active pharmaceutical ingredients PharmaZell has been put up for sale by its private equity owner, people close to the matter said. Brazil's largest private lender Itau Unibanco Holding SA ITUB4.SA has reached an agreement with power company Equatorial Energia SA EQTL3.SA to invest 1 billion reais ($251.16 million) in a subsidiary, according to a securities filing. Aircastle Ltd AYR.N said Japan's Marubeni Corp 8002.T and Mizuho Leasing Co Ltd 8425.T had offered to buy the aircraft lessor in a deal valued at $2.4 billion, ending a nearly two-week long strategic review of its business. Taylor Morrison Home Corp TMHC.N agreed to buy smaller rival William Lyon Homes WLH.N for more than $800 million in cash and stock, creating the fifth-biggest homebuilder in the United States. South Korean conglomerate LG Corp said Macquarie Asset Management has been selected as the preferred bidder for a 35% stake it is selling in an IT services firm. Australia's South32 Ltd S32.AX said it would sell its South Africa thermal coal business to Seriti Resources and two trusts for 100 million rand ($6.78 million) upfront and deferred payments of up to 1.5 billion rand per annum. North Asia-focused private-equity firm MBK Partners is targeting as much as $6 billion for its fifth buyout fund, said two people with direct knowledge of the matter, adding to a list of buyout firms chasing capital for investing in the region. Xerox (NYSE:XRX) Holdings Corp XRX.N is considering making a cash-and-stock offer for personal computer maker HP Inc (NYSE:HPQ) HPQ.N at a premium to its market value of about $27 billion, the Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday.