[This commentary was published in The Salt Lake Tribune on February 17, 2011. It remembers the work ethic and fortitude of NBA hopeful Jerry Sloan in 1966, as seen through the eyes of a twelve year-old.] Thousands of men across America have had to make peace with their demon. With a little better luck or […]
Maryland’s Gambling Governors—lies, damned lies, and statistics [Published in Baltimore Citybizlist.com on November 1, 2010. See http://baltimore.citybizlist.com/1/2010/10/30/Maryland%E2%80%99s-Gambling-Governors%E2%80%94Lies-Damned-Lies-and-Statistics.aspx#] By Douglas M. Schmidt Years from today, if Marylanders are asked to cite Governor Martin O’Malley’s greatest achievement while in office, the first answer will be, “He was the governor who gave us slots.” The Governor’s ego and […]
Another promising Baltimore youngster has lost his life to violence; what are we going to do about it? [Published in The Baltimore Sun on July 20, 2010. See www.baltimoresun.com/news/opinion/oped/bs-ed-crowder-20100720,0,307036.story] By Douglas M. Schmidt 5:17 PM EDT, July 20, 2010 John Crowder, playing for Our Lady of Mt. Carmel High School, was a special and feared […]
December 2009 – Fourth Quarter 2009 Statistical Review Mid-Atlantic Deal Review Editor’s Note: The December edition consists only of a statistical review of 4th Quarter Mid-Atlantic capital markets activity with associated commentary. Quick Stats from Chessiecap is the most comprehensive and thoroughly researched presentation of Mid-Atlantic transaction data available—Private Placements, M&A and Public Offerings. Mid-Atlantic […]
[This is the third commentary based on public filings concerning the proposed merger of The Stanley Works and Black & Decker Corporation as well as other publicly available information on the two companies.] When I first learned of the sale of Black & Decker Corporation (NYSE: BDK) to The Stanley Works (NYSE:SWK) in November of […]
November 2009 Mid-Atlantic Deal Review from Chessiecap, Inc. Editor’s Note: Running late for Nov reporting, but I think you will find the Deal and News Notes sections informative. This is the 3rd Edition of the Mid-Atlantic Deal Review, a monthly review of transaction activity in the D.C.-Maryland-Virginia-West Virginia region. This edition is a Free Trial, […]
No signs of a reviving deal economy in the November data. November was an unusual month where Maryland (paced by a large M&A deal) captured 87% of M&A volume and 71% of private placement volume (half of which was Biotech). In general, in recent months, Maryland companies have been more in need of capital and […]
BroadSoft, Inc. Takes a Pinch to Facilitate an Acquisition. 11/2/09 Private Placement. This was the tiniest of rounds at $1.5M. The SEC filing says that the money is used for acquisition purposes. This news comes just weeks after the company announced plans to acquire Silicon Valley-based Packet Island, a maker of web-based software used to […]
The Motley Fool, Once Every Ten Years Whether You Need It or Not. 11/2/2009 Private Placement. Motley Fool, the multi-faceted financial services company from Alexandria, took a whopping $25M round from BIA Digital Partners and Patriot Capital. This is the first capital taken since a $30M round in 2001
Zyngenia Attracts NEA. 11/4/2009 Private Placement. Thomson recorded this investment at only $3M. The press release clearly stated that it was the full $10M. Either amount falls below the normal threshold for the mighty NEA. More than likely, if this early stage investment
Millennial Media adds NEA as a New Lead Investor. 11/16/2009 Private Placement. In its 4th round of capital since 2006, Millennial Media of Baltimore brings in NEA as a new investor and lead alongside a stellar cast of Columbia, Bessemer and Charles River. This $16M brings the mobile media provider up to
Lighting Retrofit International Becomes 1st Investment for Arborview. 11/17/2009 Private Placement. In an era when venture capital funds are disappearing both locally and nationally, it is worth noting that Arborview Capital of Chevy Chase made its first investment in November.
WellAWARE Systems Gets First Time Capital from Valhalla. 11/17/2009 Private Placement. You have to like the way this one looks—traditional, retro venture investing from Gene Riechers at Valhalla. WellAWARE of Charlottesville “provides a monitoring solution that gathers and reports behavioral and wellness information
SunEdison LLC Where Big-Time M&A Comes to Maryland. 11/23/2009 Sale of Company. The reports on the big Wall Street bonuses that have so recently rubbed Joe Six-pack the wrong way are that the bonuses are going to the traders and not to the M&A professionals. M&A has not begun to recover as our monthly statistics […]
Global Defense Technology & Systems, Inc. (Nasdaq:GTEC) Joins the Public Companies Ranks. The public market segment for companies that do business with the U.S. Government has fared far better than the general market in the past decade—but it has a tenuous and fragile nature to it. Leaving aside the Tier I contractors such as Lockheed […]