FINN40915: Mergers, Acquisitions and Other Corporate Restructuring

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• to develop students' ability to master the knowledge and understanding at an advanced level of key issues in M&A;
• to provide students with the opportunity to develop their ability to critically understand current theoretical and empirical research in the field of M&A;
• to provide students with the ability to critically review this specialised complex area of knowledge with a view to undertaking a dissertation in the field of M&A and potentially future research work in this area.

• Overview of M&As;
• Takeover tactics and takeover defence;
• Leveraged transactions and corporate restructuring;
• Target valuation;
• Empirical tests of M&A performance;
• Value creation through M&As;
• Cross-border acquisitions and risk.

Subject-specific Knowledge:

• By the end of the module students should have:
• an advanced knowledge and critical understanding of the principles and practice of corporations involved in M&A, including those associated with cross-border acquisitions and risk;
• an understanding of the implications of agency considerations, and modes of payment including the complexity and contradictions inherent in managerial decisions relevant to M&A decisions;
• explored, understood and appreciated the complexity and contradictions of the current academic literature on M&A and its implications for professional practice.
• the ability to learn and work independently in the area of M&A, exercising critical judgement and discrimination in the resolution of complex problematic situations;
• the ability to apply problem solving and analytical skills in the context of M&A.

Subject-specific Skills:

• By the end of the module students should:
• have advanced level skills in valuing targets and assessing the potential sources of gains from M&A;
• be able to use highly specialised and advanced technical, professional and academic skills in the analysis of relevant specific problems in the area of M&A.

Key Skills:

• Written Communication;
• Planning, Organising and Time Management;
• Problem Solving and Analysis;
• Using Initiative;
• Numeracy;
• Computer Literacy.

• A combination of lectures, seminars and guided reading will contribute to achieving the aims and learning outcomes of this module.
• The summative written assignment will test the learning outcomes by requiring students to demonstrate their understanding of key issues in M&A and their ability to analyse specific problems in M&A.

Work prepared by students for seminars; answers to questions either discussed during a seminar, or posted on Learn Ultra. Verbal formative feedback will be given to students as a group throughout the seminars.

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