Disney and 21st Century Fox used 4 words that should make employees nervous (DIS, FOXA)

• Disney has agreed a deal to buy 21st Century Fox’s studio and television production assets for $52.4 billion.
• The companies said in a press release the acquisition will result in at least $2 billion in “cost savings from efficiencies.”

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Disney has agreed a deal to acquire 21st Century Fox’s studio and television production assets for $52.4 billion. 21st Century Fox shareholders will receive 0.2745 Disney shares for each 21st Century Fox share they own.

In the press release announcing the deal, the companies used four words that should make Disney and 21st Century Fox employees nervous: “cost savings from efficiencies.”

“The acquisition is expected to yield at least $2 billion in cost savings from efficiencies realized through the combination of businesses, and to be accretive to earnings before the impact of purchase accounting for the second fiscal year after the close of the transaction,” the release said.

In corporate speak, “cost savings from efficiencies” indicate areas where investment bankers or the firms involved in the deal have identified redundancies or opportunities to make the combined company leaner, thus saving on costs.

While synergies can also mean cutting redundancies in things like software and machinery, a large chunk of the savings typically comes from reduced employee headcounts.

As we’ve pointed out, these synergies often aren’t what they’re cracked up to be and don’t help earnings after mergers. Many of these cost-cutting measures may never come to fruition.

Bob Bryan contributed reporting.