Delaware Supreme Court Rebukes Chancery for Disregarding Deal Price
High Court rejects Chancery’s decision to disregard deal price entirely in favor of court’s DCF analysis; record belies Chancery’s finding that deal price undervalued company stock, High Court says, urging adoption of deal price as fair value on remand.
Trustee’s Attack on Merger Projections Fails to Resonate With Court
Court says trustee fails to show debtor was insolvent under any applicable financial condition tests; contemporaneous industry analysis and valuations by financing banks belie claim that management projections in support of merger were unreasonable.
High Court Finds Chancery’s Weighting of Values Unexplained and Inexplicable
State Supreme Court declines to create presumption for appraisal actions that deal price is best indicator of value when merger was arm’s-length transaction, but court finds Chancery’s valuation approach lacked support in record and requires revaluation.
DCF Projections Failed to Reflect Target’s Operative Reality, Chancery Says
In joint fiduciary-appraisal action centering on Sprint’s acquisition of minority interest in related entity, Chancery says merger was entirely fair and adopts respondent expert’s DCF analysis; huge value gap is 90% due to experts’ choice of projections.
‘Fanciful’ Projections Make DCF an Unreliable Tool in Appraisal Proceeding
In statutory appraisal, Chancery decides to “defer” to deal price, citing a robust sales process and well-functioning market; petitioners’ DCF analysis was not a useful valuation tool where it was based on, “at best, fanciful” management projections.
Chancery’s DCF Upends Appraisal Arbitrage Strategy
In statutory appraisal, Chancery relies solely on DCF analysis, noting the instant case involving a bank holding company raises a unique situation in terms of management projections and whether and how to account for creation of excess regulatory capital.
Chancery’s fusion valuation triggers remand and some words of wisdom by Del. Supreme Court
The Delaware Supreme Court recently overturned a 2016 ruling by the Delaware Court of Chancery that arrived at fair value by weighting the results of three valuation techniques equally. The high court's Chief Justice Strine, who once headed the Chancery, found this approach was problematic and used the decision to provide valuation advice to his successor, Chancellor Bouchard, who had overseen the appraisal proceeding.
DFC Global Corp. v. Muirfield Value Partners, L.P. (II)
State Supreme Court declines to create presumption for appraisal actions that deal price is best indicator of value when merger was arm’s-length transaction, but court finds Chancery’s valuation approach lacked support in record and requires revaluation.
High Court Finds Chancery’s Weighting of Values Unexplained and Inexplicable
State Supreme Court declines to create presumption for appraisal actions that deal price is best indicator of value when merger was arm’s-length transaction, but court finds Chancery’s valuation approach lacked support in record and requires revaluation.
ACP Master, Ltd. v. Sprint Corp.
In joint fiduciary-appraisal action centering on Sprint’s acquisition of minority interest in related entity, Chancery says merger was entirely fair and adopts respondent expert’s DCF analysis; huge value gap is 90% due to experts’ choice of projections.
DCF Projections Failed to Reflect Target’s Operative Reality, Chancery Says
In joint fiduciary-appraisal action centering on Sprint’s acquisition of minority interest in related entity, Chancery says merger was entirely fair and adopts respondent expert’s DCF analysis; huge value gap is 90% due to experts’ choice of projections.
In re Appraisal of SWS Group, Inc.
In statutory appraisal, Chancery relies solely on DCF analysis, noting the instant case involving a bank holding company raises a unique situation in terms of management projections and whether and how to account for creation of excess regulatory capital.
Chancery’s DCF Upends Appraisal Arbitrage Strategy
In statutory appraisal, Chancery relies solely on DCF analysis, noting the instant case involving a bank holding company raises a unique situation in terms of management projections and whether and how to account for creation of excess regulatory capital.
Proxy Disclosed Sufficient Valuation Data to Allow Informed Vote on Merger
Chancery says proxy gave disinterested shareholders sufficient information about valuation analysis underlying financial advisor’s fairness opinion to enable informed vote, and it dismisses breach-of-fiduciary-duty claims under business judgment rule.
In re PetSmart, Inc.
In statutory appraisal, Chancery decides to “defer” to deal price, citing a robust sales process and well-functioning market; petitioners’ DCF analysis was not a useful valuation tool where it was based on, “at best, fanciful” management projections.
‘Fanciful’ Projections Make DCF an Unreliable Tool in Appraisal Proceeding
In statutory appraisal, Chancery decides to “defer” to deal price, citing a robust sales process and well-functioning market; petitioners’ DCF analysis was not a useful valuation tool where it was based on, “at best, fanciful” management projections.
Chancery Says Solid Sales Process Lends Credibility to Deal Price
In appraisal action, Chancery says final merger consideration best represents fair value, noting sales process led to “meaningful price discovery”; court says with DCF too much depends on assumptions; small changes may have outsize impact on value range.
Judicial Appraisal Lacks Valuation Evidence and Gets Dinged on Appeal
Appeals court scraps judicial appraisal, finding it was not based on competent evidence; in valuing dissenting shareholder’s interest in auto dealership, trial court ignored expert opinions but failed to detail methodology supporting its valuation.
Trustee’s Attack on Merger Projections Fails to Resonate With Court
Court says trustee fails to show debtor was insolvent under any applicable financial condition tests; contemporaneous industry analysis and valuations by financing banks belie claim that management projections in support of merger were unreasonable.
Weisfelner v. Blavatnik (In re Lyondell Chem. Co.)
Court says trustee fails to show debtor was insolvent under any applicable financial condition tests; contemporaneous industry analysis and valuations by financing banks belie claim that management projections in support of merger were unreasonable.
Merger valuation disclosures were adequate. Chancery applies business judgment rule to breach of fiduciary duty action
The business judgment rule has featured prominently in a number of recent breach of fiduciary duty cases in front of the Delaware Court of Chancery. Under the rule, the court must not interfere in a transaction if a majority of the minority shareholders approved the deal and the vote was “uncoerced and fully informed.”
Court of Appeals Sides With Taxpayers on Right to Vet IRS Expert Valuation
Court of Appeals finds Tax Court held mistaken view of burden of proof and erred in declining to evaluate taxpayers’ multiple challenges to IRS’s expert valuation; on remand, Tax Court may consider new valuation evidence, appeals court says.
Tennessee Sticks With Delaware Block Method in Judicial Appraisals
Appeals court says trial court followed applicable law when it used Delaware block method to determine fair value of dissenting shareholders’ interests; court declines to change law on valuation, saying reversal must come from state Supreme Court.
Chancery Bases Fair Value Calculation on Income-Based Model
Flawed sales process makes merger price an unreliable indicator of fair value for statutory appraisal, Chancery finds; in accord with party experts, court uses discounted net income approach and adopts most of respondent expert’s inputs for its valuation.
In re Merge Healthcare Inc. Stockholders Litigation
Chancery says proxy gave disinterested shareholders sufficient information about valuation analysis underlying financial advisor’s fairness opinion to enable informed vote, and it dismisses breach-of-fiduciary-duty claims under business judgment rule.