Wire

M&A Capital Gains

Watermark Wire: To What Degree Would a Capital Gains Hike Influence M&A?

The capital gains tax has been a topic of debate for many years, as both individuals and business owners must take these one-time taxes into account when exiting investments. Among other tax hikes currently proposed by the Biden Administration, the proposed Federal long-term capital gains hike under consideration for assets sold greater than $1MM is…
M&A Protecting National Interests

In Focus: Protecting National Interests in M&A Transactions

Who is CFIUS? Much has been written and spoken about foreign companies with ties to communist governmental regimes acquiring US-based companies. This article discusses how the US government protects our country’s national security issues when M&A transactions are suspect. Many may not know that there is a body within the U.S. government that is devoted…
M&A in a Devisive World

2021 M&A Wire #1: M&A in a Divisive World

We are pleased to share Watermark’s inaugural M&A Wire for 2021. Back to Fundamentals: Comprehensive M&A Expertise a Rarity, but also a Requirement M&A continues, as it always has been, to be a risky endeavor. If any one area in M&A goes sideways, that can spell trouble. Considering M&A involves so many processes and skills,…

Sellers, Be Aware of M&A Advisors’ Biases

A fascinating mergers & acquisitions topic rarely written about is, how would a business owner know if the advice they are receiving from M&A bankers is biased. Does the advice favor the owner or the banker? From my experience, most business owners do bounce the decision to sell off family members, respected peers, professional advisors,…

How Will COVID-19 Influence M&A Valuations?

COVID-19 is impacting how practitioners value target companies for M&A purposes. How are valuation practices changing and what stays the same? Let’s take a look. Guideline Publicly Traded and M&A Transaction Comparables methods’ influence over a final valuation range should be reconsidered during this crisis. First, looking at the M&A Transactions method, Revenue and EBITDA…

Southern Style M&A: An Interview with Hagen Rogers

Hagen Rogers is the Executive Managing Director at Watermark Advisors, LLC. Watermark prides itself on its “Southern style” approach to M&A. Knox Kiernan, an intern at Watermark, interviewed Rogers to learn more about this unique, relational approach. (This interview is also available as a podcast.) Our discussion today centers around the idea of Southern style…

Six Month Carolinas and Georgia M&A Transaction Report

We’ve compiled six months of data on the top recent M&A transactions in the Carolinas and Georgia. Table of Contents Aggregate M&A Summary – Last Six Months Carolinas & Georgia Transactions By Sector Most Active Acquirer by Total Transaction Size Regional Merger & Acquisition Valuation Summary Regional Number of Deals by Transaction Range Last Six…

COVID-19’s Influence on M&A

We at Watermark want to contribute to the developing COVID-19 situation by sharing facts and opinion on how this global development is affecting M&A markets. The information table below should be no surprise regarding a slowdown in closed United States M&A transactions year to date through March 15th. Interestingly enough, M&A transaction announcements are up…

Crowdfunding: Is It Here to Stay?

Table of Contents Crowdfunding Overview Crowdfunding Transactions in Carolinas & Georgia in 2019 Private Placements in Carolinas & Georgia June – December 2019 The Jumpstart Our Business Startup (JOBS) Act, enacted in 2012, allowed startup companies and small businesses to offer and sell securities to the general public through crowdfunding. The Securities and Exchange Commission…

Was Softbank’s Acquisition of WeWork a Shrewd or Sucker Move?

The We Company has received a lot of press coverage in recent months after a failed IPO shocked many in business and financial markets. Last week’s announced acquisition of The We Company by SoftBank prompts the question, “Is SoftBank shrewd or a sucker?” SoftBank Group, headquartered in Tokyo, operates 6 business segments: telecommunications in Japan,…