Verso Paper announced that it would acquire NewPage Holdings in a deal worth $1.4 billion. NewPage rejected a similar offer from Verso in 2012, also valued at $1.4 billion. So what changed this time around? Quite simply, it’s the environment: Both paper companies realize the paper market is shrinking and that’s not about to change …
Tag: External Growth
Capstone Builds Michelman-Maruyoshi Chemical Joint Venture
January 13, 2014 (McLean, VA) – Capstone Strategic, Inc., a leading management consulting firm specializing in strategic growth, announced today that Michelman and Maruyoshi Chemical have entered into a joint venture, Maruyoshi Michelman Co. Ltd. Michelman is a global developer of water-based coatings headquartered in Cincinnati, OH. Maruyoshi is a specialty waterborne polyolefin emulsions and chemical …
Top Mistake Leaders Make When Pursuing M&A
Many leaders take a reactive rather than proactive approach when it comes to M&A. They often realize that their organic growth is stagnant and they’ve got some money they can leverage, so they decide to make an acquisition. What do they do? They go find for-sale companies or respond to those that have found them. …
Facebook Offered $3 Billion to Acquire Snapchat
Facebook’s $3 billion offer to buy Snapchat points to a growing number of mobile technology acquisitions. Yesterday The Wall Street Journal reported Facebook offered $3 billion to acquire Snapchat. While Snapchat has declined, Facebook’s offer points to growing trend of technology companies acquiring rather than building new mobile apps. Most recently, we’ve seen a string …
How Acquisitions Can Help Small Businesses Grow
Did you know about 97% of acquisitions are small to mid-sized companies? Acquisition is an effective tool that can be used by companies of any size, not just those in the Fortune 500. To see how, watch my interview with Matthew Lesko. When we think of mergers and acquisitions, we often only think of mergers …
How to Increase Success of M&A
A recent Deloitte survey noted frequent misalignment between CFOs and company directors about the strategic rationale of M&A. The study concludes that CFOs and board members should align their M&A strategy for greater success. Naturally, I’m not surprised by these findings. The likelihood of successful acquisition would increase if all parties shared the same strategy. …
What Apple’s Slower Growth Means for You
Apple’s growth has slowed significantly. USA Today reports that its gross margin dropped for the fifth straight quarter to 36.8% of sales and that iPad sales are down by 16%. Apple CEO Tim Cook has recognized Apple is in a mature, slow-growth market. If a company that grew steadily through the recession and whose stock …
How to Grow Your Company During a Recession
American individuals and corporations are playing it safe, according to The Wall Street Journal, contributing to a slower employment rebound: “[After the recession] of the early 1990s, it took 32 months for payrolls to rebound fully. After the even milder recession of 2001, it took four years. Today, nearly four years after the end of …
Growth Pathway # 5: Pursue External Growth
The fifth and final pathway to growth is external growth. Here, expansion is achieved by engaging with entities outside your company. There are many forms of engagement, of which acquisition is but one. External growth can be one of the most exciting paths to growth and in many cases, it should top your list of …
The Power of Minority Interest: Microsoft’s Interest in Dell
Although I deal primarily with mergers and acquisitions, acquisition is simply one pathway to external growth and should be considered in a broader context. One of the pathways to external growth to consider is minority interest ownership. Microsoft’s proposed buyout of Dell demonstrates many of the benefits of minority interest ownership, a surprisingly neglected tactic. …
