Editing Mergers and acquisitions (section)

===Objectives in more recent merger waves===
During the third merger wave (1965–1989), corporate marriages involved more diverse companies. Acquirers more frequently bought into different industries. Sometimes this was done to smooth out cyclical bumps, to diversify, the hope being that it would hedge an investment portfolio.

Starting in the fifth merger wave (1992–1998) and continuing today, companies are more likely to acquire in the same business, or close to it, firms that complement and strengthen an acquirer's capacity to serve customers.

In recent decades however, cross-sector convergence<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.bloomberg.com/gadfly/articles/2018-01-02/dealmaking-trend-for-corporate-america-is-cross-pollination|title=Corporate America's Dealmakers Are Cross-Pollinating|newspaper=Bloomberg.com|date=2 January 2018|access-date=2018-10-18}}</ref> has become more common. For example, retail companies are buying tech or e-commerce firms to acquire new markets and revenue streams. It has been reported that convergence will remain a key trend in M&A activity through 2015 and onward.

Buyers are not necessarily hungry for the target companies' hard assets. Some are more interested in acquiring thoughts, methodologies, people and relationships. [[Paul Graham (computer programmer)|Paul Graham]] recognized this in his 2005 essay "Hiring is Obsolete", in which he theorizes that the free market is better at identifying talent, and that traditional hiring practices do not follow the principles of free market because they depend a lot upon credentials and university degrees. Graham was probably the first to identify the trend in which large companies such as [[Google]], [[Yahoo!]] or [[Microsoft]] were choosing to acquire startups instead of hiring new recruits,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.paulgraham.com/hiring.html|title=Hiring is Obsolete|access-date=18 February 2015}}</ref> a process known as [[acqui-hiring]].

Many companies are being bought for their patents, licenses, market share, name brand, research staff, methods, customer base, or culture.<ref name="Hollenbeck2020"/> Soft capital, like this, is very perishable, fragile, and fluid. Integrating it usually takes more finesse and expertise than integrating machinery, real estate, inventory and other tangibles.