Bernstein Launches Web 'Microsite' on Advice about Selling a Business

NEW YORK, Dec. 2, 2010 /PRNewswire/ -- Bernstein Global Wealth Management, a unit of AllianceBernstein L.P., announced today it has launched a website comprising a groundbreaking research report and four brief audiocasts dedicated to answering financial-planning questions around selling a privately held business. The "microsite" is designed to aid business sellers, prospective sellers, and the professional teams who work with business owners engaged in a sale.

The site URL is www.alliancebernstein.com/abcom/Opportunity/Selling_A_Business/SellingBusiness.htm.

It can also be reached through Bernstein's home page at www.bernstein.com.

The white paper research report is authored by Bernstein Wealth Management Group professionals Greg Singer and Brian Wodar. It presents best practices for planning all aspects of a sale from pre-transaction strategies through post-transaction implications. The four audiocasts focus on the highlights of Bernstein's research, specifically:

• How business sellers can assess the pros and cons of multiple offers
• How sellers can plan for a retirement that will meet all their goals
• What sellers should do to boost their legacies to family and charity
• How sellers might think about today's thorny tax questions

Both the paper and the audiocasts start with the premise that for owners, selling a business raises as many emotional issues as financial. "At every point along the sale continuum," says Singer, "the owner and his professional team are grappling with both monetary and personal issues. The key to satisfying both sides of that equation is planning."

Adds Wodar, "Forecasting wealth outcomes is critical. We use a unique quantitative tool to assist sellers in understanding the impact that a potential transaction can have on them and their families. It combines the pro-forma cash flows generated by an investment banker with the probabilistic behavior of the capital markets. It's a great tool in helping owners assess how well they'll meet their objectives with one selling strategy or another."  This analysis can accommodate just about any seller and set of circumstances.

Sums up Singer, "A business seller should feel in control of the situation rather than at the whim of external forces. Our planning process allows him to make an informed decision to go ahead and execute a transaction that will meet his needs."

About AllianceBernstein

AllianceBernstein is a leading global investment management firm that offers high-quality research and diversified investment services to institutional investors, individuals and private clients in major world markets.

At September 30, 2010, AllianceBernstein Holding L.P. (NYSE: AB) owned approximately 36.7% of the issued and outstanding AllianceBernstein Units and AXA, one of the largest global financial services organizations, owned an approximate 63.0% economic interest in AllianceBernstein.

Additional information about AllianceBernstein may be found on our internet site, www.alliancebernstein.com.

SOURCE AllianceBernstein