In the mergers and acquisitions world, they are called “takeunders,†acquisitions at a price that is less than the target company's stock market value. Now, a number of recent deals for companies that have gone public in recent years offer a variation on the theme: takeovers for less than the initial offering price.
Zipcar, which announced on Wednesday that it would be acquired by Avis Budget Group, is one such instance.
The car-sharing company went public in April 2011 at $18 a share and rose as high as $29.27. Wednesday's offer of $12.25 a share - while amounting to a 49 percent over Zipcar's stock price as of Dec. 31 - represents a discount of 32 percent from its I.P.O. price.
Zipcar is only the latest example, according to data Standard & Poor's Capital IQ. Take an offering from an exuberant market in 2006, when Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Company took Sealy pu blic in April 2006 for $16 a share. In September, the company was acquired by rival Tempur-Pedic for $2.20 a share.
Other recent deals represent much less of a comedown from such buoyant market debuts. Starbucks acquired Teavana - which went public for $17 a share in July 2011 - for $15.50 a share. That deal closed on Wednesday.
Duff & Phelps, meanwhile, agreed earlier this week to be sold to a group that includes the Carlyle Group for $15.55 a share. The financial advisory firm went public in October 2007 at $16 a share.
