Is acquiring-firm shareholder approval in stock-for-stock mergers perfunctory? From: Financial Management | Date: December 22, 2004| Author: Burch, Timothy R.; Morgan, Angela G.; Wolf, Jack G. | COPYRIGHT 2004 Financial Management Association. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan.  All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group.Copyright information

Despite mixed stock returns for acquirer shareholders in large stock-for-stock mergers, acquiring-firm merger proxy votes rarely fail; in the sample we examine, the average approval rate of votes cast is 95%. Our examination of whether merger votes are effective in monitoring management's acquisition policy indicates that the margin of approval varies substantially with firm and deal characteristics, and while there are no failed votes in our sample some deals are only narrowly app...