(Chicago Tribune: Business, 10 May 2012) In Brief: To increase sales of specialty foods and expand its mix of products, Bed, Bath & Beyond will acquire Cost Plus Inc. in a deal worth $495 million. Our View: Companies should prioritize their deal opportunities systematically and transparently to accelerate M&A value capture. Conduct due diligence to [...]
Read more(Reuters, 8 May 2012) In Brief: General Electric may spend up to $1.5 billion over the next three years on small acquisitions to improve its data-analytics capabilities, according to this article. The company aims to extend the time that heavy equipment like jet engines and gas turbines can run without unscheduled maintenance. Our View: M&A [...]
Read more(Wall Street Journal, 7 May 2012) In Brief: ABC News and Univision Communications Inc. are partnering to develop a 24-hour cable news channel targeting a Hispanic audience in the US. The two companies will co-own the channel, which will broadcast in English, and the accompanying website. Our View: Many organizations are looking to joint ventures [...]
Read more(The Grocer, 1 May 2012) In Brief: Food sector M&A activity increased 22% in 2011 and will continue to rise in 2012, according to a new study. Our View: Companies that pursue M&A deals should create a tangible framework for discussing strategy across the enterprise. Simplify the initial target identification process to make it easier [...]
Read more(The Wall Street Journal, 3 May 2012) In Brief: The majority of companies will prioritize cross-border deals in emerging, high-growth markets over transactions in home markets this year, according to a global survey of more than 250 executives conducted by a UK law firm. Our View: Traditionally, Internal Audit’s primary responsibility in M&A was to [...]
Read more(Forbes, 2 May 2012) In Brief: Deal making is set to take off this year because the economy appears too healthy to slip back into recession, yet not quite strong enough to generate further revenue and profit gains, according to this writer. Consequently, many companies will try to hit their growth targets through acquisitions. Our [...]
Read more?(The Associated Press, 30 April 2012) In Brief: Microsoft spending $300 million for a minority stake in Barnes & Noble Inc.’s new subsidiary for e-books and college textbooks. The deal will also result in a Nook application for Microsoft’s Windows 8 tablets. Our View: Many organizations are looking to joint ventures as a way to [...]
Read more(Bloomberg Businessweek, 25 April 2012) In Brief: US Airways Group is meeting informally with AMR Corp.’s unsecured bondholders to strengthen a possible bid for American Airlines, according to Bloomberg News. US Airways has already convinced American’s three major unions that a merger would bolster American as it exits bankruptcy. Our View: As global M&A activity [...]
Read more(CFO, 23 April 2012) In Brief: A new M&A study yields some interesting, yet seemingly contradictory insights. For example, in the first 40 days after an acquisition, most deals don’t generate positive shareholder value. On net, however, the benefits derived from successful deals outweigh the negative effects of failures. Also, in each of the three [...]
Read more(Wall Street Journal, 23 April 2012) In Brief: AstraZeneca is acquiring biotechnology company Ardea Biosciences Inc. for $1.26 billion to expand its new product pipeline. The London-based pharmaceutical manufacturer is making small acquisitions to offset losses from expired medical patents for its top-selling drugs. Our View: Smaller, more heterogeneous deal opportunities aimed at accelerating revenue [...]
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