Accelerated Share Repurchase
A structured buyback transaction in which a company immediately repurchases a large block of shares from an investment bank.
Acquisition
The purchase of one company by another, with the buyer gaining control.
Asset Sale
A transaction in which a company sells specific assets or divisions rather than the entire entity.
Carve-Out
A partial IPO in which a parent company sells a minority stake in a subsidiary to public investors while retaining majority ownership.
Cash Dividend
A direct payment of cash from a company's earnings to shareholders, typically distributed on a regular quarterly schedule.
Cash Merger
An acquisition in which shareholders of the target company receive a fixed cash payment per share as consideration.
Change of Control
The acquisition of a majority ownership stake in a company by a new controlling party, triggering contractual and legal provisions.
Corporate Restructuring
A broad set of strategic actions that reorganize a company's operations, finances, or ownership to improve long-term value.
Cross-Border Merger
A merger combining two companies from different countries, subject to multiple regulatory, tax, and currency considerations.
Debt-for-Equity Swap
A transaction in which creditors exchange outstanding debt claims for equity shares in the debtor company.
Debt Tender Offer
A company's public invitation to bondholders to sell their bonds back before maturity, typically at a premium to par value.
Demerger
A corporate split in which a company divides into two or more independent companies, distributing shares to existing shareholders.
Direct Listing
A method of going public in which a company lists existing shares on a stock exchange without issuing new shares or hiring underwriters.
Dutch Auction Tender
A share repurchase mechanism where shareholders bid minimum prices and the company pays one clearing price for all accepted shares.
Equity Offering
The issuance and sale of shares in a company to investors, used to raise capital or provide liquidity for existing shareholders.
Exchange Offer
A corporate transaction in which an issuer proposes to swap one class of outstanding securities for a different class or new series.
Fairness Opinion
An independent investment bank assessment of whether the financial terms of a merger or acquisition are fair to shareholders.
Going Private
The process of converting a publicly traded company into a private company, removing its shares from a stock exchange.
Going Public
The process by which a private company offers its shares to the general public for the first time through an initial public offering.
Greenmail
The practice of a company repurchasing a hostile shareholder's stake at a premium to end a takeover threat.
Hostile Takeover
An acquisition attempt that proceeds without the approval or against the wishes of the target company's board of directors.
IPO
The first time a private company sells shares to the general public on a stock exchange.
LBO
The acquisition of a company using significant borrowed funds.
MBO
An acquisition in which a company's management team purchases the business.
Merger Agreement
The definitive legal contract between an acquirer and a target company specifying the full terms and conditions of a proposed merger.
Merger Arbitrage
An investment strategy that profits from the price spread between a target stock's trading price and the announced acquisition price.
Merger of Equals
A combination of two similarly sized companies structured as a partnership of peers with shared governance and leadership.
Merger
The combination of two companies into a single new entity.
Open Market Repurchase
A share buyback program in which a company purchases its own stock on the open market at prevailing prices over time.
Poison Pill
A shareholder rights plan that allows existing shareholders to buy new shares at a discount, diluting a hostile acquirer's stake.
Proxy Fight
A campaign in which dissident shareholders solicit proxy votes from other shareholders to replace board members or change company policy.
Recapitalization
A restructuring of a company's capital mix by altering the balance of debt and equity on its balance sheet.
Reverse Merger
A transaction in which a private company goes public by merging into an existing publicly traded shell company.
Reverse Split
A corporate action that consolidates shares, reducing their count while proportionally increasing the price per share.
Reverse Takeover
A transaction in which a private company gains effective control of a publicly listed entity, achieving a public listing in the process.
Rights Issue
An offer allowing existing shareholders to buy new shares at a discount before they are offered publicly.
Scrip Dividend
A dividend program that gives shareholders the choice to receive new shares instead of their cash dividend entitlement.
Secondary Offering
The sale of new or existing shares by a public company after its IPO.
Share Buyback
A company's repurchase of its own outstanding shares, reducing shares in circulation and often increasing earnings per share.
Share Repurchase
A company buying back its own shares from the open market, reducing the number of shares outstanding.
Shelf Registration
An SEC registration that allows a company to pre-register securities and issue them over up to three years without a new filing.
SPAC
A shell company that raises capital through an IPO with the sole purpose of merging with or acquiring a private company to take it public.
Special Dividend
A one-time, non-recurring cash distribution to shareholders separate from and in addition to any regular dividend.
Spin-Off
A new independent company created by separating a division from a parent company.
Squeeze-Out
A mechanism allowing a majority shareholder above a statutory threshold to compulsorily acquire remaining minority shares.
Statutory Merger
A merger governed by corporate law in which one company absorbs another, which ceases to exist as a separate legal entity.
Stock Dividend
A distribution of additional shares to existing shareholders instead of a cash payment, proportional to current holdings.
Stock-for-Stock Merger
An acquisition in which target shareholders receive shares of the acquiring company at a fixed exchange ratio instead of cash.
Stock Repurchase Program
A board-authorized plan allowing a company to systematically buy back its own shares over time.
Stock Split
A corporate action that divides existing shares into multiple new shares, lowering the price per share while keeping total market value unchanged.
Strategic Acquisition
A company purchase driven primarily by long-term competitive advantages rather than short-term financial return.
Takeover Bid
A formal public offer by an acquirer to purchase shares of a target company at a specified price, often at a premium.
Takeover Premium
The percentage above a target company's pre-announcement share price paid by an acquirer to gain control.
Tender Offer
A public offer to purchase some or all of shareholders' shares at a specified price, usually above the current market price.
Tracking Stock
A share class whose economic value is linked to the performance of a specific subsidiary or business unit within a parent company.
Voluntary Delisting
A company's decision to withdraw its shares from a stock exchange at management's initiative rather than due to exchange sanctions.
White Knight
A friendly acquirer that rescues a target company from a hostile takeover by offering better terms or a preferred deal structure.