Boutique financial adviser Allen & Co. set to cash in with Twitter deal

Boutique financial adviser Allen & Co. LLC is back as one of the firms working with Twitter Inc. on its $47.29 billion sale to billionaire Elon Musk.

While advisory fees are yet to be disclosed for the Twitter deal, Allen & Co.'s prior work on some of the technology, media and telecommunications sectors' biggest deals suggests a hefty payout ahead.

Allen & Co. is among the advisers working with game-maker Activision Blizzard Inc. on its pending $79.59 billion sale to Microsoft Corp., which ranks as the largest technology-sector transaction of all time, according to 451 Research. The Twitter deal ranks fifth.

Allen & Co. will invoice Activision $65.0 million in adviser fees and another $10.0 million for a fairness opinion on the sale.

Allen & Co. also worked with LinkedIn Corp. on the professional networking site's $29.30 billion sale to Microsoft in 2016. The firm did not disclose its fees on that transaction, but fellow adviser Qatalyst Partners LP charged LinkedIn $55.0 million.

Other advisers working on the pending Twitter sale include The Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and JPMorgan Chase & Co. Buyer Musk hired Morgan Stanley, Bank of America Corp. and Barclays Capital Inc. to advise on his side of the deal.

Morgan Stanley is a frequent adviser on capital markets activity involving Musk's electric vehicle company Tesla Inc. The firm has advised Tesla on 10 equity market deals and one debt issuance, including the company's 2010 IPO, according to data from S&P Global Market Intelligence.

Morgan Stanley ranks as the most active tech M&A adviser since 2011, serving 600 clients in that timeframe, according to 451 Research. JPMorgan and Goldman Sachs were the second and third most active, advising on 517 and 491 sector deals, respectively. Allen & Co. failed to make the top 10 by volume, despite its work on several large deals.