Corporate divestitures around acquisitions

Divestitures often accompany acquisitions. Relying on a global sample, we provide support for the efficient restructuring view of acquisition-related divestitures. These divestitures add on average 2% to the total value creation of the acquisition process, translating into a value increase of $149 million. We test various efficiency channels potentially explaining this value contribution. The results indicate that the value contribution varies with the synergistic potential of the acquisition process. We do not find empirical support for efficiency-improvement related to agency correction, financial constraint relaxation, and regulatory concern anticipation. Examining returns for divestitures only, we find that those around acquisitions are not transactions with weak bargaining positions.