Toisten yritysten myymiä osia aktiivisesti ostavien yritysten menestys ohjelmistotoimialalla

摘要

Corporate mergers and acquisitions (M&As) are a popular means by which companies pursue various strategic objectives. However, studies show that M&As on average do not produce positive returns to the acquirer. Furthermore, the existing research on factors contributing to acquisition performance is inconclusive at best.This study complements the existing research on M&A performance by focusing on acquisitions of divestments as a distinct subset of all acquisitions. Besides individual acquisitions, the study considers multiple acquisition programs, continuing the research stream initiated at Helsinki University of Technology. The aim is to find out if acquisitions of divestitures perform on average better than acquisitions of stand-alone firms both in the short and long run. The objective is also to determine what factors affect the performance of acquirers of divested assets.The sample used in this study consists of a total of 1,143 acquisitions undertaken by the 60 most active acquirers during the time period 1988-2005, where the acquirer operated in the US software industry. The data was analyzed by multivariate regression, using the event study methodology for individual acquisitions, and panel regression for acquisition programs. Performance was measured by the acquirer's market value change.The results show that both the short and long term average performance of acquirers buying divested assets was above average. The returns are significantly higher when the divested target enjoys a better fit with the acquirer than with the divesting parent. Also the long term performance of acquirers classified as "strategic" based on their systematic acquisition behavior was found significantly positive. On the other hand, divestiture acquisitions bought from a financially distressed parent contributed negatively to long-term market value. The deal price of divestiture acquisitions did not have a significant effect according to this study.This study makes a valuable contribution to existing research by showing a positive relationship between divestiture acquisitions and buyer performance. The result has implications to corporate managers who plan to use M&As as a strategic move. Furthermore, the study opens up various questions for further research in terms of divestiture acquisitions and acquisition programs. Through triangulation by multiple methods using different time frames it also raises some methodological concerns regarding the prevalence of short-term measures in existing acquisition research.