Organisation: Punch

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Analysis and commentary by Echo Research.

Punch's acquisition of Spirit was a win-win situation for its 37 year old " beaming" (Independent, 2/12) Chief Executive, Giles Thorley. Rendering Punch the UK's biggest pub owner in one fell swoop, the deal was also viewed favourably by the City, analysts and the media, as reflected in the next day's headlines: "Punch tops pub league with £2.6bn Spirit takeover" (Daily Telegraph, 2/12); "Punch toasts £2.7bn deal to buy Spirit" (Scotsman, 1/12), "How Punch fought its way back to number one place in the beerage" (Independent, 2/12).

Coverage focused heavily on the upside of the deal: the enhanced earnings potential, the share price hike, the increase in quality of the Punch estate. " They have two to three years' worth of growth in this transaction. They don't need to worry about acquisitions for a while - they've done it" commented one analyst (Independent, 2/12), while another noted that " Punch has a track record of delivering value from innovative transactions" (Newratings, 2/12): " Punch has landed the killer blow" observed Lex (FT, 2/12). " Quite an achievement for any chief executive, let alone one as young as Thorley" concluded The Business Online (4/12). With a successful deal, and media and analyst sentiment firmly behind him, Punch's Thorley has indeed showed winning spirit.