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FleetBoston buys Meehan
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July 25, 2000: 4:31 p.m. ET
Fleet to buy NYSE specialist firm; to be No. 1 specialist on Big Board
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NEW YORK (CNNfn) - FleetBoston Financial Corp. agreed Tuesday to acquire New York Stock Exchange specialist M.J. Meehan & Co. LLC, creating the No. 1 specialist firm on the Big Board based on the number of common stocks represented.
Once the deal is completed, the new company -- to be called Fleet Meehan Specialists -- will make a market for 433 common NYSE stocks; 59 of which are among the 250 most active stocks, eight in the Dow Jones industrial average and 86 in the S&P 500 index.
Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Each NYSE stock has a single specialist firm that manages the auction process of that equity. Specialist firms help supply stock market liquidity by stepping in as purchasers and sellers of equities when outsiders exhibit little or no interest. They also help moderate big price swings.
"During the past year we've looked intensely for a combination that would be additive and complementary to M.J. Meehan," said Terence S. Meehan, CEO of M.J. Meehan who will become chairman of the new company. "The capital strength of our corporate parent, FleetBoston Financial, is attractive to the companies we represent as well as companies choosing to list on the NYSE for the first time."
The new entity will be a combination of FleetBoston's specialist unit, Fleet Specialists, and M.J. Meehan. Fleet Specialists Chairman Christopher C. Quick will become Fleet Meehan's CEO, while Fleet Specialist President Myles Gillespie will become Fleet Meehan's president.
Shares of FleetBoston fell 1/2 to 37-3/8 in late trading Tuesday on the New York Stock Exchange. 
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Fleet Financial Group
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