Most Successful Mergers And Acquisitions Of All Time

While many marriages end in divorce, people continue to seek out a partner to spend the rest of their lives with. The same is true of mergers and acquisitions. While many fail, the successful ones give corporate finance professionals and business tycoons hope for the future; that the marriage of two companies can repair a broken bottom line, for better or worse.

To celebrate these successful unions, Rasmussen College compiled a list of the most (and least) successful mergers of all time. What went right, and why can't all business transactions have their happy-ever-after?

Disney-Pixar While Disney was already releasing Pixar films before the merger, the marriage allowed Pixar resources and merchandising they were never able to achieve before. This explains why films like Toy Story and Finding Nemo can't match the smash hit Cars when it comes to merchandising. Disney has released 2 Pixar films a year since the merger, a production level unheard of before Disney came into the picture.

Sirius-XM Radio Acquisition finance professionals and analysts thought Sirius and XM would become the Coke and Pepsi of the satellite radio world. But on July 29, 2008, the two companies joined forces, effectively creating a monopoly over the world of digital radio. With huge assists from stars like Howard Stern, Martha Stewart and Oprah, both companies saw unprecedented business as many car companies made XM/Sirius an option on all cars they sell. Once the two companies were able to get around FCC licensing restrictions, the merger was instantly successful and still has no equal.

Exxon-Mobile: This $81 billion deal forged in 1999 created the world-wide leader in oil production. Today the company is leading the charge on many energy breakthroughs that can keep the company in business long after oil.