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From Wall Street to Davos, President Trump’s arrival and mood shift has prompted a torrent of optimism throughout the dealmaking and business community as equity markets in the U.S. hit new highs. “Animal spirits are back, with high optimism in the business community,” says JP Morgan’s Global Head of Advisory and M&A, Anu Aiyengar. In its new 2025 M&A outlook report, the bank cites declining interest rates, a burgeoning IPO market and a more relaxed regulatory environment as key factors poised to help dealmaking “thrive” this year.
Downtown at Goldman, M&A co-heads Stephane Feldgoise and Mark Sorrell are equally bullish. On the bank’s Exchanges podcast, they predicted deal-making will accelerate this year, driven by more cross-border M&A and IPO activity. Investors’ upbeat mood was equally high at Davos, where famed investor Stanley Druckenmiller told CNBC, "CEOs are somewhere between relieved and giddy.”
Activists are a happy bunch as well. Paul Singer, Carl Icahn, Nelson Peltz and Dan Loeb all backed President Trump, a veritable who’s who of troublemakers are equally giddy, though rising equity prices may make tempting targets pricier.
Speaking of activists, proxy season is in full swing, with the first major contested election wrapping up this week between Paul Hilal’s Mantle Ridge and Air Products. Jeffrey Goldfarb of Reuters Breakingviews argued that dissident investors’ focus on the age of 82-year-old CEO and Chair Seifi Ghasemi was misguided. It appears the activists have won. The Deal reported that investors voted to replace Ghasemi as a director at the company’s annual meeting on Thursday, electing three of Mantle Ridge’s four dissident nominees to the board.
Meanwhile, anti-DEI shareholder proposals submitted by conservative-leaning groups are taking center stage amidst the changing political winds in Washington and in the Boardroom. These groups have submitted proposals urging major banks, including Goldman, JP Morgan, Bank of America and Citigroup, to scale back or eliminate their DEI initiatives. “Bring them on” says Jamie Dimon. Meantime, Costco shareholders roundly beat back an anti-DEI activist proposal this week at its annual meeting.
Have a great weekend,
GPP team
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