Deal of the Week

M&A is a rigged game and the losers are shareholders of companies that do the acquiring, according to Aswath Damodaran, a professor of corporate finance and valuation at New York University. He tells host Alex Sherman that conflicts of interest among advisers, misaligned executive incentives and a refusal to involve the market in decision-making has led to a history of value-destroying deals. Still, October was the biggest month ever in terms of deal volume. Why do companies keep making big purchases when some evidence suggests it's bad for shareholders? Damodaran explains on this week's episode.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

For our 50th episode extravaganza, you get two deals for the price of one (which is nothing!). CenturyLink is buying Level 3 for $34 billion in cash and stock, including debt. Surprised Level 3 is so big? We were too. Bloomberg Gadfly columnist Tara Lachapelle and telecom reporter Scott Moritz explain the businesses of CenturyLink and Level 3 and why a merger makes sense, although maybe not at $34 billion. Plus, Gannett's attempt to buy Tronc has officially failed. Bloomberg Gadfly columnist Brooke Sutherland joins host Alex Sherman once more to shake their heads at the name Tronc...and talk about why the deal failed.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

M&A reporter Ed Hammond and Executive Editor Jeff McCracken join host Alex Sherman for a behind-the-scenes look at how we broke the biggest deal of the year, AT&T's plan to buy Time Warner. The trio discuss how sometimes what people don't say can be as telling as what they do. Plus, we discuss whether the deal will lead to even more mega-media mergers.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Snapchat (OK, Snap Inc.) has hired banks to run its initial public offering. Morgan Stanley is running the show, a return to potential glory after fumbling Facebook's IPO. Meanwhile, Twitter, whose IPO with Goldman Sachs garnered praise, is publicly stumbling in its quest to find a buyer. Bloomberg IPO reporter Alex Barinka tells host Alex Sherman why Snap is looking to both social media companies for lessons -- not just on how to go public but how to operate as a public company.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Qualcomm is making progress on acquiring NXP -- a deal that could be worth about $47 billion including debt. That would make it the largest tech deal of the year and the second-largest ever. Bloomberg's Ian King and Brooke Sutherland explain to host Alex Sherman why a deal makes sense for both sides, even if it comes with some major integration challenges. If there's an agreement, Qualcomm would become the largest supplier of chips used in cars, a stated interest of the San Diego-based chipmaker.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

When CBS and Viacom split more than 10 years ago, Viacom was supposed to be the crown jewel. It had the cable networks, the media industry's money-makers. Fast-forward to today, and Viacom is floundering as millennials ditch cable TV and Paramount Pictures struggles. CBS, meanwhile, is flourishing from must-see broadcast network programming and hit shows on Showtime. Now, controlling shareholder National Amusements is calling for the two companies to explore coming together again. Bloomberg reporter Lucas Shaw and editor Crayton Harrison explain the pluses and minuses of a merger to Deal of the Week host Alex Sherman.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

CBOE's $3.2 billion acquisition of Bats Global Markets may sound like a wonky financial transaction. That isn't really the case, Bloomberg M&A reporter Matt Monks tells Deal of the Week host Alex Sherman. Actually, you can view it as a technology deal. Monks and Sherman discuss why stock and options exchanges are consolidating and explain why technological changes have upended the industry.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Maybe you've watched "Old Jews Telling Jokes" on YouTube. But have you heard Morgan Stanley M&A head Rob Kindler and his brother, stand-up comedian Andy Kindler, telling jokes about old Jews? Yes, the Kindler brothers are this week's Deal of the Week guests. You can even rate their jokes (listen until the end!). Rob is one of the world's renowned M&A bankers after spending 20 years as a corporate lawyer at Cravath Swaine & Moore. Andy is one of the world's funniest people. He delivers a hilarious annual keynote speech on the state of the comedy world at Montreal's "Just for Laughs" festival. How did their parents produce these two people, whose professions aren't exactly similar? And for M&A diehards, Rob gives a prediction on if we'll see any more megadeals in 2016. They chat with host Alex Sherman.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The numbers speak for themselves. So far this year, just 70 companies sold shares to the public for the first time. That's half the pace of last year and a fraction of the 213 IPOs during the same period in 2014. Why are companies staying private longer, or selling themselves, instead of going public? Does 2017 herald a revival of the IPO market, or should we expect more of the same? Bloomberg IPO reporter Alex Barinka explains to host Alex Sherman why companies decide to go public and what's on tap for next year.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Investors seem to be praying Twitter will sell itself. The stock jumps almost 5 percent at every rumor or vague hope the company is engaging the prospect of selling, according to research by Bloomberg Gadfly columnists Shira Ovide and Brooke Sutherland. But the rumors are never true (yet!), even though "market deal chatter," whatever that is, happens all the time. Why is Twitter M&A speculation so rampant and unreliable, and how can investors use Twitter as a money-making tool? Sutherland and Ovide chat with host Alex Sherman.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.