The Failing Firm/Industry Doctrines in Conglomerate Mergers

Abstract

THIs paper provides some new empirical data on the pre-merger profitability of acquiring and acquired firms, and their respective industries, in a sample of conglomerate mergers occurring during I 960 to I969. The data shed some additional light on the popular 'failing firm/industry' hypotheses as explanations for conglomerate merger, and thus have important anti-trust policy implications for such mergers.