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Using the Mergers and Acquisitions database
Who is this article for?
Users who want to learn about the Mergers and Acquisitions database.
No special access or permissions are required.
The Audit Analytics Mergers & Acquisitions database tracks current and historical material transactions as reported in Item 1.01, as well as other transactions identified by select hit text. Per SEC requirements this includes all '33 and '34 Act filers.
1. Common uses
- Track M&A market share for SEC registrants with insight into which auditors are engaged at the time of the transaction and what auditor represents the surviving company
- Monitor changes in control of clients or business partners for conflict due diligence
- Analyze transactions by party CIK, market cap, revenue, industry, auditor, closed date, and value
- Key data points include commenced date, transaction type, and party type
- Monitor relevant disclosures for ongoing transactions with daily updates (available only in the data feed)
The Mergers & Acquisitions database is available online, through WRDS, and through data feeds [Feed18] with the relevant subscription.
- Saved Search Alert: Yes
- Daily Summary Email: No
2. Collection methodology
- All transactions where at least one party is an SEC registrant are entered into the database.
- A company must be acquiring a controlling interest (>50%) in another company for it to be included in the database.
- This data is sourced from the following form types: 8-K, 8-K/A, 6-K, 6-K/A, 425, DEFM14A, F-4, F-4/A, 25-NSE, S-4, and S-4/A [and their amendments]
3. Searching
- The Mergers & Acquisitions search page offers the following filters:
| Name | Description | Data Dictionary Field(s) | Sort By? |
| Filter by Auditor | Filter for a specific auditor or group of auditors | Auditor | No |
| Search by Ticker or CIK Code | Filter results to a specific population | CIK Code | No |
| Market Index | Filter by Market Index | N/A | No |
| Transaction Descriptions | Filter by transaction description | Description | No |
| Party Type | Filter by named party’s role in the transaction | Party Type | No |
| Market Cap | Filter by a range of market capitalization | Market Cap (USD) | No |
| Revenue | Filter by a range of named party’s total revenue | Revenue (USD) | No |
| Transaction Value | Filter by disclosed transaction value | Value (USD) | Yes |
| Company Location | Filter by current business address location(s) | N/A | No |
| Search Industries | Filter by companies’ industry(s) | SIC Code NAICS Code | No |
| Closed Date | Filter by date the merger or acquisition was finalized, or the date the merger is anticipated to close by | Closed Date Closed Date is Estimate | Yes |
| Commenced Date | Filter by date the parties entered into the merger or acquisition agreement | Commenced Date | Yes |
4. Results
- Results can be viewed at the bottom of the page.
- The following are accessible through clicking the respective hyperlinks:
- Mergers & Acquisitions Data Dictionary download
- CSV file downloads of the results
- Option to download Transaction-level Summary or Party-level Detail data
- All fields available in the CSVs are defined in the Data Dictionary
- Overview of individual companies’ profile