Applied Mergers & Acquisitions, Finance 697

Finance 697 focuses on developing an understanding of the practitioner's skills and perspecitives relating to the creation of investor value through business acquisitions.  Designed for professionals and graduate students with a keen interest in business development, the course employs the case method approach to provide more in-depth exposure to 1) the identification, investigation, assessment and valuation of acquisition targets; 2) the perspectives, tools and disciplines required for successful acquisition; and 3) the strategic orientation underlying those efforts as a foundation for producing future investment returns.

In addition to the text and a diversity of instructive case studies, the course leverages topical current events and other research materials to evaluate a variety of actual transactions through lively class discussions with the mission of illuminating best practices in the discipline.  Each class focuses on a key topic which, generally, will be explored as it applies in practice through the assigned case study.  Assessment and analytical tools are employed to provide experience with business valuation so students may better assess contemporary transactions as either an outside investor or an M&A practitioner.

Practical application of skills are provided through in-class and online analysis, a mid-term and final exam.  Students are expected to submit weekly, one-page memoranda about one of the assigned cases.

Each class features an assigned case study for class discussion and an optional current events topic for online discussion.

Topics include:

       M&A ethical considerations
       Making acquisitions pay
       Acquiring to add value
       Conditions for optimal success and identifying acquisition targets
       Initiating contact and due diligence
       Acquisition valuation techniques
       Valuing synergies
       Valuation cautions
       Highly leveraged valuations
       Valuing liquidity and control
       Option theory in M&A
       Deal design
       Contingent deal payments
       Risk management and non-competes
       Employment and consulting agreements
       Payment form and financing
       Negotiation process
       Negotiation strategy
       Transaction documents
       Auctions
       Hostile takeovers and defense
       Leveraged buy-outs and leveraged recapitalizations
       Integration
       Legal rules of the road

The texts include:

       Robert F. Bruner, Applied Mergers & Acquisitions (John Wiley & Sons, 2004)
       Robert F. Bruner, Applied Mergers & Acquisitions Workbook (John Wiley & Sons, 2004)