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target company

target company

1 4.2
A company that another company wants to buy
  • noun
  • Jargon
translation icon : empresa objetivo
  • When groups of hedge funds sold short and then spread exaggerated rumors that their target companies were facing near-term bankruptcy.

Once the merger happens, the target company is now public, having avoided an IPO.

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Examples

  • After careful consideration, they decided on a target company that aligned with their business goals.

  • Even if nothing is stolen or destroyed, these electronic incursions can cost the target company a great deal of money and time.

    Academic text (2003)
  • Once the merger happens, the target company is now public, having avoided an IPO.

  • The remainder of the proceeds raised in the IPO are then the funds that are used to buy the target company that it then plans to take public.

  • The driving fear for companies is "successor liability" or "buying an FCPA violation." Companies seeking to acquire another will quickly walk away from a deal for fear of being held liable for past violations committed by a target company.

    Blog text (34)
  • If the merger scheduled for next Tuesday occurred and this was not disclosed, it would likely result in accounting misrepresentations for the target company and damages to financial holders of the acquiring firm.

    Blog text (28)
  • Section IV.C then turns to the impact of these spikes on the extent to which incumbent management's valuation of a target company should receive deference in the context of a contest for corporate control.

    Academic text (2016)
  • The CEO announced that the target company would be acquired in a deal worth millions.

  • During negotiations, the target company revealed its financial reports to potential buyers.

Synonyms

takeover target
vstarget company
  • Jargon
1 5.2

A company that another company or investor wants to buy

is actively chosen as the desirable candidate for acquisition

How Desirable

target company
  • Jargon
1 4.2
takeover target
  • Jargon
1 5.2

Surface Forms

Morphology

target + company

The phrase 'target company' is compositionally built from 'target' (an object or goal of an action) + 'company' (a business), so a learner who knows both words can infer it refers to a company that is the object of some action (e.g., acquisition). This construction is a straightforward attributive noun pattern and is cross-linguistically common in business contexts, so it will be readily understandable to a B1 learner even if some domain-specific nuance (takeover) requires context.

Etymology

Target company comes from the image of a target: one business picked out by another company as the thing they aim at when they want to 'buy' it. That's why the phrase means a company chosen as the possible goal of a 'takeover' or an offer to 'buy'.