Investopedia: Merger Monday Recap

If you want to know how companies feel about the economy, check the pre-market newswires on Monday mornings. When companies are feeling confident, news of mergers and acquisitions roll in like clockwork. There is certainly plenty of room for debate about how many of these deals will ever add any real value, but it is an uncanny indicator all the same. Moreover, even if these deals produce no real value for the buyers, major investment banks like Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) and Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS) still collect their fees for the deals.

A Busy Start to April 

This Monday (April 4, 2011) was a busy morning, with five significant deals on the tape and offers or rumors of others soon to come. Deals popped up across the board and in a wide range of industries, including mining, restaurants, industrial, and healthcare.

Cornering the Seafood Market? 

Tilman Fertitta, the CEO of Landry's Restaurants, announced a plan to launch a hostile bid for McCormick & Schmick's Seafood Restaurants (Nasdaq:MSSR). If the bid is accepted by shareholders, and Fertitta already owns about 10%, they will get $9.25 in cash per share - a 30% premium to Friday's close. This deal values MSSR at about $137 million. The takeover multiple is a significant discount to restaurants like Ruby Tuesday (NYSE:RT), DineEquity (NYSE:DIN) or Cheesecake Factory (Nasdaq:CAKE), but it's in line with other struggling restaurants. MSSR has struggled as high-end dining has yet to recover its housing bubble glories.

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