Part of the Business terms glossary:

A conglomerate is a company that comprises multiple different corporations. The most common type of conglomerate is a parent company with one or more subsidiaries, which are partially or wholly-owned companies.

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Corporations form conglomerates for a variety of reasons, including:

  • The desire to become involved in a business that is different from the company's main focus.
  • A desire to diversify so that, for example losses in one business may be offset by gains in another.
  • An intention to transition the company toward a new area of business.
  • Attractive revenues, either historical or projected, from the prospective subsidiary.
  • A need to protect company's established business from risks associated with the subsidiary.

When a conglomerate owns less than a controlling percentage of another company's voting stock, the second company is known as an associate or an affiliate.

Investopedia.com provides this example: 

"For example, the Walt Disney Corporation owns about a 40% stake in the History Channel, an 80% stake in ESPN and a 100% interest in the Disney Channel. In this case, the History Channel is an affiliate company, ESPN is a subsidiary and the Disney Channel is a wholly owned subsidiary company."

 

This was last updated in March 2013
Contributor(s): Ivy Wigmore
Posted by: Margaret Rouse

Related Terms

Definitions

  • affiliate (associate)

    - An affiliate or associate business is a company with a parent corporation that owns less than a controlling percentage of the company's voting stock. (WhatIs.com)

  • parent company (holding company)

    - A parent company is a corporation that has subsidiaries, which are wholly or partially-owned separate businesses controlled by the parent. (WhatIs.com)

  • subsidiary

    - A subsidiary is a business that is wholly or partially owned by another business, sometimes called the parent company or holding company. (WhatIs.com)

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