Dawn Raid

Dawn Raid

The action of a firm or investor buying a substantial amount of shares in a company (making it a target firm) first thing in the morning when the stock markets open. This is done by a stock broker acting on behalf of a company. Because the bidding company builds a substantial stake in its target at the prevailing stock market price, the takeover costs are likely to be significantly lower than they would be had the acquiring company first made a formal takeover bid.

Notes:

Like the dawn raid in war, the corporate dawn raid is done early in the morning, so by the time the target realizes it's being attacked, it's too late - the investor has already scooped up some controlling interest. However, only a maximum of 15% of a firm's shares can be bought this way. So, after a successful dawn raid, the raiding firm is likely to make a takeover bid to acquire the rest of the target company.

See also: Acquisition, Broker, Hostile Takeover, Merger, Takeover, Target Firm

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Dawn raid

A term of British origin used to describe the purchase of all available shares of a target company at the market's open by a raider. A dawn raid is a surprise technique that allows the raider to gain a substantial share of the target company before the target company knows what is happening.