Merrill Lynch said today it bought Equity Methods LLC, a company that helps corporations value the stock options they grant to employees, for an undisclosed sum.
Stock options valuation has become increasingly important as new accounting rules have forced companies to record the value of the stock options they grant to employees as an expense on their income statements.
Equity Methods, based in Scottsdale, Arizona, will operate independently as part of Merrill Lynch's Global Private Client Retirement Group.