acquisition

noun

ac·qui·si·tion | \ˌa-kwə-ˈzi-shən

Definition of acquisition

1 : the act of acquiring something acquisition of property the acquisition of knowledge

2 : something or someone acquired or gained The team announced two new acquisitions.

Other Words from acquisition Synonyms More Example Sentences Learn More about acquisition

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Examples of acquisition in a Sentence

Steven Schwartzman, the billionaire CEO of Blackstone, suffers no personal liquidity problems. But his firm, and others like it—have had to call off a series of proposed acquisitions because they can't get financing. — Daniel Gross, Newsweek, 3 Mar. 2008 The gifting of books, too, endured as a legacy of our book hunting. I quickly learned not to ask for newly published books as birthday or Christmas presents, since they provided my father with too little of a challenge. The measure of a gift's value was the amount of thought and effort that went into its acquisition. — Charles Mitchell, Bloomsbury Review, November/December 2002 Although some believe that the rise of advertising and strip malls have fostered slavish devotion to shopping where it didn't exist before, Hine posits that the acquisition of objects has a firm place in humanity's history. — Publishers Weekly, 7 Oct. 2002 McKnight and Ward, free-agent acquisitions who each have only one full season as a starter, have brought much-needed speed to the position. But rookie Chris Chambers, a second-round draft pick from Wisconsin, is the jewel. — Jeffri Chadiha, Sports Illustrated, 1 Oct. 2000 the country's acquisition of new ships The big company's newest acquisition is a small chain of clothing stores. The museum has put its latest acquisitions on display.

Recent Examples on the Web

According to Bloomberg, the chips were discovered by Amazon's Web Services division in 2015 during the due diligence prior to the acquisition of a video streaming company called Elemental Technologies, whose servers were assembled by Super Micro. — Eric Limer, Popular Mechanics, "Tiny Chinese Microchips Reportedly Found Hidden in Amazon, Apple Servers," 4 Oct. 2018 Investors got nervous about continuing to put money into Quidsi given the new competition from Amazon, and in 2010, Quidsi agreed to the acquisition. — Emily Stewart, Vox, "Happy Prime Day! Experts worry Amazon is building a dangerous monopoly.," 17 July 2018 The Toffees are looking to bolster their squad ahead of the new season, but are yet to make a summer acquisition. — SI.com, "Watford Reject Everton's €30m Bid for Star Player as Toffees Look to Bolster Midfield Squad Depth," 13 July 2018 After a rapid acquisition of English-speaking online properties in 2016, Univision Media Co. is reversing course. — Sam Machkovech, Ars Technica, "Two years after buying, Univision wants to sell its Gawker, Onion portfolios," 11 July 2018 The mine would become Vulcan in a 2005 acquisition. — Lily Altavena, azcentral, "Controversy in the air as Mesa homeowners decry neighboring asphalt plant’s odors," 11 July 2018 Apple was already showing significant interest in news aggregation back in Mar. 2018 with the acquisition of magazine subscription service Texture -- which, incidentally, is part-owned by Condé Nast, Ostroff’s current employer. — Cherie Hu, Billboard, "Aggressive Content Bundling Might Be Spotify's Only Chance of Competing With Apple, Amazon," 10 July 2018 But with the club battling the Boston Red Sox in a close AL East race, Machado could be a key stretch-run acquisition this season. — Eduardo A. Encina, baltimoresun.com, "Yankees have inquired about trading for Manny Machado, but offer has not yet been made," 9 July 2018 So, no, a sign-and-trade acquisition by the Heat is not impossible, but unlikely. — Ira Winderman, Sun-Sentinel.com, "ASK IRA: Will the sign-and-trade option be in play for Heat this summer?," 1 July 2018

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

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10 Dec 2018

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The first known use of acquisition was in the 15th century

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More Definitions for acquisition

acquisition

noun

Financial Definition of acquisition

What It Is

An acquisition is the purchase of all or a portion of a corporate asset or target company.

How It Works

An acquisition is commonly mistaken with a merger – which occurs when the purchaser and the target both cease to exist and instead form a new, combined company.

When a target company is acquired by another company, the target company ceases to exist in a legal sense and becomes part of the purchasing company. Acquisitions are commonly made by using cash or debt to purchase outstanding stock, but companies can also use their own stock by exchanging it for the target firm's stock. Acquisitions can be either hostile or friendly.

For example:

Let's assume Company XYZ wants to acquire Company ABC. Company XYZ starts to buy ABC shares on the open market, but once Company XYZ acquires 5% of ABC, it must formally (and publicly) declare to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) how many shares it owns. Company XYZ must also state whether it intends to buy ABC or just hold its existing shares as an investment.

If Company XYZ wants to proceed with the acquisition, it will make a "tender offer" to ABC's board of directors, followed by an announcement to the press. The tender offer will indicate, among other things, how much Company XYZ is willing to pay for ABC and how long ABC shareholders have to accept the offer.

Once the tender offer is made, ABC can accept (1) the terms of the offer, (2) negotiate a different price, (3) use a "poison pill" or other defense to avert the deal, or (4) find another company, who hopefully will pay as much or more as XYZ is offering, to buy them.

If ABC accepts the offer, regulatory bodies then review the transaction to ensure the combination does not create a monopoly or other anti-competitive circumstances within the industries involved. If the regulatory bodies approve the transaction, the parties exchange funds and the deal is closed.

Why It Matters

Companies acquire target companies as a growth strategy because it can create a bigger, more competitive, and more cost-efficient entity. This synergy -- the idea that the two companies together are more valuable to the shareholders than they are apart -- is elusive, but it is the idea used to justify most acquisitions. A well-executed acquisition can be the crowning jewel of a CEO's career.

Knowing how to analyze acquisitions can put individual investors in a great position to profit from the stock price fluctuations that accompany them.

Click here to learn How to Play the Buyout Game: 3 Tips for Finding the Best Deals

Source: Investing Answers

acquisition

noun

ac·qui·si·tion | \ˌa-kwə-ˈzi-shən