Hartford Courant – The corporate mergers-and-acquisitions business has been so strong during the first two months of 2006 that investment bankers are predicting a record year for deals.
The year has already brought Boston Scientific Corp.’s $27.2 billion acquisition of Guidant Corp. and The Walt Disney Co.’s $7.4 billion purchase of Pixar Animation Studios Inc.
Analysts attribute the increase in deals, in part, to heightened activism among investors such as hedge funds that are pushing companies to sell off unprofitable business units.
Another factor is the long-held belief that buying a competitor is the fastest way to expand a company.
“It is easier to buy something than build it from scratch,” said Andrea Pericli, a portfolio manager with Euclid Financial Group, a Washington, D.C.-based hedge fund.
