Write an accretion/dilution note for a public acquisition
An M&A note with transaction rationale, accretion/dilution model, synergy cases, risks, and board-style recommendation.
Build
Model, memo, dashboard, notebook, or deck.
Explain
Clear assumptions, insight, and recommendation.
Show
Resume bullet and interview story.
What you are doing
You are working as a Investment Banking. Your manager asks you to use M&A analysis to answer a real business or investment question and present a decision-ready output.
Show that you can apply M&A analysis in a practical analyst workflow, not only explain the theory.
What to make
An M&A note with transaction rationale, accretion/dilution model, synergy cases, risks, and board-style recommendation.
Deliverables
- Brief
- Model or notebook
- Charts or dashboard
- Resume bullet
- Source and assumption log
- One-page executive summary
- Final output file
How to start
- Choose a public acquisition or create a realistic buyer-target pair.
- Capture buyer and target financials, share count, debt, cash, and valuation multiples.
- Define transaction structure: cash, stock, debt, or mixed consideration.
Step-by-step execution
- Build standalone buyer and target earnings.
- Estimate purchase price, financing cost, share issuance, and synergies.
- Calculate accretion/dilution under base/upside/downside synergy cases.
- Explain strategic rationale, integration risk, and valuation fairness.
- Create a one-page recommendation for whether the buyer should proceed.
Data and sources
- Acquirer and target filings
- Deal press release
- Investor presentation
- Exchange announcements
- Public news coverage
Tools to use
- Excel
- company filings
- Excel or Google Sheets
- PowerPoint / Google Slides
- Public filings
Quality rubric
- Transaction assumptions are explicit.
- Accretion/dilution math is transparent.
- Synergy assumptions are not unrealistic.
- Strategic rationale links to financial impact.
- Recommendation includes risks and conditions.
Resume bullet
Built a an m&a note with transaction rationale, accretion/dilution model, synergy cases, risks, and board-style recommendation. for M&A analysis, using Excel, company filings to convert raw information into a decision-ready finance output.
Interview talk track
- Problem: explain the business question and why it matters for Investment Banking.
- Method: describe the data collected, assumptions made, and analysis performed.
- Decision: state the recommendation, key risk, and what would change your view.