TheStreet.com acquires The Deal magazine

The Street.com announced Wednesday the acquisition of The Deal LLC, a media company primarily covering the mergers and acquisitions market, from private equity firm Wasserstein & Co.

Michael Baron of TheStreet writes, “During a conference call, TheStreet disclosed the purchase price for The Deal was $5.8 million in cash and said it plans to discontinue The Deal’s monthly print magazine, resulting in an undisclosed number of layoffs. In a Form 8-K filing, the company said it expects to record ‘material charges for exit and disposal activities’ related to its restructuring plan but didn’t estimate the amount of the charges.

“‘This is a terrific combination that grows the most profitable portion of our business, subscription revenues,’ said Elisabeth DeMarse, CEO of TheStreet, in a statement. ‘The Deal is a prominent and well-respected brand that the market will intuitively associate with TheStreet, creating new revenue opportunities for both businesses at minimal incremental cost.’

“On the conference call, DeMarse said the transaction is likely to immediately add to cash flow on a pro forma basis.

“‘If you have solid information that makes people money, you can get paid for that,’ DeMarse said on the call when asked about the combined company’s business plan going forward.”

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