Awards for Excellence 2017
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The shifting dynamics of the M&A market during the awards period has tested the mettle of advisory franchises. Corporates in particular have been wary – for different reasons at different times. The Obama administration had applied aggressive scrutiny that saw deals blocked in sectors such as healthcare, a situation compounded by the natural caution imposed by an upcoming presidential election.
The caution gave way to a brief period of euphoria following the victory of Donald Trump, with expectations of regulatory easing and tax reform. Little headway has yet been made on either front, however; and a rising rate environment and high stock prices have made life tougher for buyers, particularly corporates.
All in all, it was an environment that demanded more innovation and less traditional thinking, which suited Goldman Sachs just fine. It wins Euromoney’s best bank for advisory in North America.
The bank dominates the league table rankings, with a 40% market share in completed deals by value in the region for the period, according to Dealogic – compared with closest rivals Morgan Stanley and JPMorgan on 28%. And unlike some asset classes and regions where the bank makes a virtue of working on fewer but bigger deals, its North America roster saw it complete 199 transactions – just three behind JPMorgan.
That said, Goldman still prizes the biggest and most complex deals. Its tally of completed transactions included the two biggest of all – advising Charter Communications on its purchase of Time Warner Cable for $87.4 billion and advising Dell on buying ECM Corp for $64.4 billion.
Sell-side work included the third biggest deal of the period, advising Spectra Energy on its acquisition by Enbridge for $43.4 billion, as well as Baxalta being bought by Shire for $34.8 billion, the fifth largest deal.
Activism and raid defence is an increasingly important feature of the top M&A advisory practices, and while the work shares features of traditional takeover advisory, it is more nuanced and an area where close relationships between bankers and their clients come to the fore.
As a firm that prides itself on being the key adviser in the boardroom as often as possible, it is a natural segment for Goldman. The bank has been building its credentials there over the past five years or so, and while such work is often by its nature unreported, this year saw Goldman act in a number of high-profile situations.
Among these were its mandates advising Allison Transmission on activism from Ashe Capital Management, Chipotle Mexican Grill being challenged by Pershing Square, Reynolds American on an unsolicited offer from British American Tobacco (which ended up with an announced sale) and Term Health on activism from Jana Partners – a situation that saw an unsolicited offer from AmSurg and then finally an announced sale to Blackstone.
