Using a sample selection and benchmarking methodology designed to more accurately assess merger-related changes in corporate focus, we find a significantly positive relationship between corporate focus and long-term merger performance. We find that focus-decreasing (FD) mergers result in...

This study examines the impact of the degree of merger-related change in corporate focus on the long-run return to investors in mergers and acquisitions executed since 1977. Using a sample of 204 completed acquisitions, selected to be free of post-merger contaminating events, and a continuous...