acquirer

noun

ac·quir·er | \ ə-ˈkwī(-ə)r-ər

Definition of acquirer

: one that acquires especially : a company that acquires another company

Examples of acquirer in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Regulators also stepped up scrutiny of the country’s most prolific overseas acquirers, triggering a slide in companies owned by some of China’s billionaire elite. — Erin Roman, Bloomberg.com, "Everything You Need to Know This Morning From Daybreak (Podcast)," 22 June 2017 Both Gannett and Digital First Media have been active acquirers. — Cara Lombardo, WSJ, "Hedge-Fund-Backed Media Group Makes Bid for Gannett," 14 Jan. 2019 Some believe Amazon could be a likely acquirer if Spiegel ever decides to sell his company, which has been struggling in the stock market for months. — Kurt Wagner, Recode, "Snap hired two new executives to replace departing Imran Khan, CEO Evan Spiegel’s right-hand man," 24 Oct. 2018 Established merchant acquirers like Worldpay and JPMorgan Chase , plus innovative players like PayPal , will compete fiercely for every merchant dollar. — Aaron Back, WSJ, "Square Is the Next FANG, and Other Signs of Market Euphoria," 27 Sep. 2018 In many tech deals, there is more often a harder road that ends in tears with a parting of ways between the acquirer and the acquired. — Kurt Wagner, Recode, "Facebook’s recent ‘bear hug’ of Instagram frustrated its independent founders, leading to their exit," 25 Sep. 2018 But several acquirers have expressed interest in buying the company in recent months if the CEO, Jason Citron, can be convinced the price is right, people with knowledge of the situation said. — Theodore Schleifer, Recode, "Who could buy Discord? Acquirers have been giving the gaming startup a long look.," 21 Nov. 2018 Tech companies are often timid about trash-talking competitors; the industry is small enough that a competitor one day can be a partner or acquirer the next. — Erin Griffith, WIRED, "The Airbnb Challenger You've Never Heard of (by Name)," 2 July 2018 While any contender in theory could use Machado, the pool of potential acquirers is realistically limited to those with holes at shortstop or third—the Phillies, Brewers, Diamondbacks and possibly the Dodgers. — Si.com Staff, SI.com, "Midseason Roundtable: The SI Staff Makes Some Second-Half Predictions," 11 July 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'acquirer.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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Last Updated

18 Apr 2019

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The first known use of acquirer was in 1607

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More Definitions for acquirer

acquirer

noun

Financial Definition of acquirer

What It Is

An acquirer is a person or company that purchases all or a portion of an asset or company.

How It Works

Company XYZ wants to acquire Company ABC. Company XYZ might just start buying ABC shares on the open market, but once Company XYZ acquires 5% of ABC, it must formally (and publicly) declare how many shares it owns to the Securities and Exchange Commission. Company XYZ must also state whether it intends to buy ABC or just hold its existing shares as an investment. In either case, Company XYZ is an acquirer. The term is mostly used in the context of purchasing a majority of another company, however.

Why It Matters

Acquirers often make acquisitions with cash, but they also use debt and their own stock as well, and there are often tax consequences associated with each form of currency.

Acquirers acquire other companies because they think they can create a bigger, more competitive, more cost-efficient entity. This synergy -- that is, the idea that the two companies together are more valuable to the shareholders than they are apart -- is elusive, but it is what justifies most acquisitions. After all, acquirers always have the much harder option of trying to "grow their own" by starting their own competitive ventures instead of buying someone else's. Targets sell their companies to acquirers because at the end of the day, the price is right. And on both sides, a well-executed acquisition can be the crowning jewel of a CEO's career.

Source: Investing Answers