Cash vs debt acquisition ...

I am scratching my head for this question - Company A is buying company B either in 100% cash or in 100% debt. If forgone interest for cash is 5% and before tax debt interest rate is 10%. Tax rate is 40%. Which acquisition will be dilutive and which will be Accretive?

6 Comments
 

Yah lxwarr30! I agree with you that cost of debt is 6%. Other point is that debt financing will provide a tax shield of 10% * Debt * 40%. So will the debt financing be accretive then? How do we come to conclude that cash financing be a dilutive then?

Thanks, Amitava
 

the tax shield is what is making the cost of debt 6% instead of 10%. They are the same point.

the method of financing is just one factor that determines if a transaction is accretive or not.

in this scenario, the cost of financing is either the lost 5% of income on cash or the 6% after-tax cost of debt. so using cash would be cheaper here, but would not necessarily mean the transaction would be accretive. that would depend on factors outside your scenario (P/E ratios between the two companies primarily).

 

If I have a P/E for company A (buyer) = 11 and P/E for company B (seller) = 10 (suppose), how that is going to have effect on cash financing? What effect P/E is going to have in the acquisition?

Thanks, Amitava
 

Here's my thought.

In both deals, number of shares outstanding does not change. So the focus is on post-acquisition earnings.

In 100% cash deal, you lose 5% interest income, so your bottom line is down by 5%(1-40%)Transaction Value

In 100% debt deal, you incur 10% interest expense, so your bottom line is down by 10%(1-40%)Trx Value

Based on this, both are dilutive, but debt deal is more dilutive than cash deal.

 

Ut molestiae dolor et voluptatum nobis officiis. Perferendis officiis est quam ad culpa tempora. Illum aliquam saepe soluta ut eius. Aut harum est omnis fuga iste.

Porro aperiam consequatur sit excepturi expedita explicabo qui. Hic ut suscipit recusandae voluptas. Ut enim quae cumque autem nemo aliquam nobis.

Career Advancement Opportunities

July 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.3%
  • Guggenheim Partners 01 97.7%
  • Morgan Stanley 07 97.2%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

July 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.4%
  • Evercore No 98.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 01 98.3%
  • Banco Santander 02 97.7%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.1%

Professional Growth Opportunities

July 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 06 98.3%
  • Goldman Sachs 01 97.7%
  • JPMorgan 01 97.2%

Total Avg Compensation

July 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (16) $429
  • Associates (46) $258
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (22) $179
  • Intern/Summer Associate (14) $159
  • 1st Year Analyst (80) $150
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (73) $101
notes
16 IB Interviews Notes

“... there’s no excuse to not take advantage of the resources out there available to you. Best value for your $ are the...”

Leaderboard

1
redever's picture
redever
99.2
2
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
3
kanon's picture
kanon
99.0
4
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
5
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
6
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
7
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
8
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
9
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
10
Mimbs's picture
Mimbs
98.8
success
From 10 rejections to 1 dream investment banking internship

“... I believe it was the single biggest reason why I ended up with an offer...”