May the best M&A win!

WHO: M.B.A. students at the Olin School of Business at Washington University in St. Louis.

WHAT: The second annual A.G. Edwards M&A Competition. Students with the best M&A proposal will win $2,000 for first prize and $1,000 for second place.

WHERE: The Knight Center for Executive Education (room 200) located on the Danforth Campus of Washington University.

WHEN: Thursday, April 19 at 6:15 p.m.

Students at the Olin School of Business will prove their creativity, critical thinking and technical skills when presenting their proposals for merger & acquisitions deals to a panel of judges composed of M&A bankers from A.G. Edwards. Three teams have been selected to give 30 minutes presentations about their proposed deal on Thursday April 19, starting at 6:15 p.m. The panel of judges will select the first, second and third best proposals. There will be an award reception in the Knight Center at the end of the competition. First and second place teams win $2,000 and $1,000, respectively.

Each team represents a buyer, and the team's goal is to put together a proposal to present to the buyer's top management team. The buyer can either be a strategic buyer or a financial buyer (e.g., a private equity fund structuring an LBO transaction). In order to create their proposals, student had to:

• Select a target firm with whom there might be some solid strategic rationale for the acquisition/merger. Think seriously about the motives and economics of the combination, and how much value the deal is likely to create for the buyer.
• Estimate the value of the target and potential synergies and how to design the deal including price, form of payment, hostile vs. friendly, fees, takeover tactics, tax considerations, organizational structure, how to finance, accounting dilution or accretion.

The competition will be followed by a reception in the Knight Center.

For more information contact Shula Neuman, (314) 935-5202, or Armando Gomes, associate professor of finance, (314) 935-4569.