They Paid $500 Million. Wall Street Said $11 Billion. Then It Lost 98%.
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- Dane Cook Lost Millions
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1Let me tell you about a deal where a company paid about five hundred million dollars,
2and a year later Wall Street said it was worth eleven billion.
3And then it lost ninety-eight percent.
4It starts in 1995 in Columbus, Ohio.
5A young woman named Angie Hicks is going door to door. Literally. She's selling memberships to a list.
6A list of plumbers, roofers and electricians that real neighbours say are good. Her first year, she gets about a thousand people to pay.
7That list becomes Angie's List. You pay a membership, you read the reviews, you hire the guy. It goes online,
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Picture 07 coming
ANGIE in 1999 in a small office in front of a chunky computer monitor showing a simple website, excited.
ANGIE in 1999 in a small office in front of a chunky computer monitor showing a simple website, excited.
8it goes national,
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Picture 08 coming
A late-night TV-ad set: ANGIE smiling into a studio camera, lights and crew around her.
A late-night TV-ad set: ANGIE smiling into a studio camera, lights and crew around her.
🔊 whoosh
9and in 2011 it goes public on the stock market at thirteen dollars a share.
10But there's a problem. It almost never makes money.
Moran
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11It loses forty-nine million in 2011. Fifty-three million in 2012. Thirty-three million in 2013.
12People love the reviews. They just don't love paying for them.
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Picture 11 coming
The HOMEOWNER at her laptop in her kitchen looking at a paywall popup blocking contractor reviews, frustrated.
The HOMEOWNER at her laptop in her kitchen looking at a paywall popup blocking contractor reviews, frustrated.
13And across the street, there's a rival. HomeAdvisor.
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Picture 12 coming
A rival orange-and-white HomeAdvisor-style van parked across the street from a blue Angie's List-style office, two buildings staring each other down.
A rival orange-and-white HomeAdvisor-style van parked across the street from a blue Angie's List-style office, two buildings staring each other down.
Text on screen: HOMEADVISOR
🔊 record scratch
14And HomeAdvisor does it the other way around. Homeowners use it for free.
15The contractors pay, every time they get a lead. And HomeAdvisor is owned by a giant called IAC.
16So how do these companies actually make money? Today Angi made about a billion dollars last year, and almost none of it comes from homeowners.
Moran
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Text on screen: $1 BILLION
17Homeowners use it for free. The money comes from the contractors, in four ways.
18One: leads. A homeowner asks for a roofer, Angi sends the request to a few roofers, and each roofer pays for it.
19Even if they don't get the job. That's the biggest piece: five hundred and eighty-seven million dollars in 2025. More than half of everything.
20Two: advertising. Contractors pay to show up higher on the site. Two hundred and fifteen million.
21Three: fixed-price jobs. You book "clean my gutters" at a set price, Angi charges you and pays a pro to do it. Seventy-two million.
22Four: memberships, about twenty-nine million. And another hundred and twenty-six million outside the US.
23And this is why contractors complain about Angi. They pay for the lead whether they win the job or not.
Moran
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Text on screen: MY 2 CENTS
24But look at it from Angi's side. One homeowner asks one question, and three or four contractors each pay for the same answer.
25That's selling one thing many times. It's a great business, if the homeowners keep coming.
Moran
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26And here's why you should care. This story has a five hundred million dollar price, an eleven billion dollar valuation,
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Text on screen: $500M → $11B
27a twelve million dollar golden parachute,
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Picture 29 coming
A CEO in a suit floating down with a golden parachute over Indianapolis, holding a briefcase.
A CEO in a suit floating down with a golden parachute over Indianapolis, holding a briefcase.
Text on screen: $12 MILLION
28a choice between eight fifty in cash or a share of stock,
Moran + cutout
Picture 26 coming
A shareholder at a fork in the road: one sign says "$8.50 CASH", the other "SHARES", most of the crowd walking toward SHARES.
A shareholder at a fork in the road: one sign says "$8.50 CASH", the other "SHARES", most of the crowd walking toward SHARES.
Text on screen: $8.50 OR SHARES?
29and a crash of ninety-eight percent.
30And by the end, I'll show you the one trick at the centre of it, called multiple arbitrage, and how it works if you buy small home service companies in your town.
Moran
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Text on screen: MULTIPLE ARBITRAGE
31Oh, and if we haven't met, my name is Moran Pober. … Just check the links below, you'll see. Okay. Back to Angie.
Moran
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Text on screen: Name card: Moran Pober, founder, Acquisitions.com
32So who is IAC? It's Barry Diller's company.
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⬇ photo-barry-diller
⬇ photo-barry-dillerText on screen: BARRY DILLER + credit: David Shankbone / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 3.0
🔊 whoosh
33And it's not a private equity fund. It's a public company that builds and buys internet businesses, grows them, and then spins them off.
Moran + cutout
Picture 13 coming
DILLER in a sleek glass penthouse office over Manhattan, looking at a wall of framed company logos like trophies.
DILLER in a sleek glass penthouse office over Manhattan, looking at a wall of framed company logos like trophies.
34Match, that's Tinder. Expedia. Vimeo. That's their playbook.
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DILLER in a sleek glass penthouse office over Manhattan, looking at a wall of framed company logos like trophies.
DILLER in a sleek glass penthouse office over Manhattan, looking at a wall of framed company logos like trophies.
Text on screen: MATCH · EXPEDIA · VIMEO
35October 2015.
36IAC's CEO, Joey Levin, writes to Angie's List's chairman.
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LEVIN at a desk writing a formal letter with a fountain pen, sly smile.
LEVIN at a desk writing a formal letter with a fountain pen, sly smile.
Text on screen: JOEY LEVIN + white arrow
🔊 phone ring
37Then there's a dinner in Chicago. And IAC puts a number on the table.
38Eight dollars fifty a share. Cash.
39Angie's List says no. So IAC goes public with it.
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LEVIN reading a newspaper headline "REJECTED" in a coffee shop, unbothered, sipping coffee.
LEVIN reading a newspaper headline "REJECTED" in a coffee shop, unbothered, sipping coffee.
🔊 record scratch
40Eight seventy-five a share. About five hundred million dollars.
41And Angie's List says no again. Too early. Undervalued. Everybody goes home.
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LEVIN reading a newspaper headline "REJECTED" in a coffee shop, unbothered, sipping coffee.
LEVIN reading a newspaper headline "REJECTED" in a coffee shop, unbothered, sipping coffee.
Text on screen: REJECTED
42And this is where deal flow really comes from. Not a listing. IAC already knew this company inside out, because it was its competitor.
Moran
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Text on screen: MY 2 CENTS · DEAL FLOW
43The best buyer for a business is very often the guy across the street.
Moran + cutout
Picture 12 coming
A rival orange-and-white HomeAdvisor-style van parked across the street from a blue Angie's List-style office, two buildings staring each other down.
A rival orange-and-white HomeAdvisor-style van parked across the street from a blue Angie's List-style office, two buildings staring each other down.
44And here's the other thing. An activist investor was sitting on Angie's List's board, pushing them to sell. So the pressure was coming from the inside too.
Moran + cutout
Picture 16 coming
A boardroom where an activist investor in a sharp suit taps the table, pointing at a chart labelled "SELL", nervous executives around him.
A boardroom where an activist investor in a sharp suit taps the table, pointing at a chart labelled "SELL", nervous executives around him.
Text on screen: ACTIVIST INVESTOR
45A year later, Angie's List tries to fix itself. It makes the reviews free.
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ANGIE ripping open a giant paywall gate, crowds of homeowners rushing in for free.
ANGIE ripping open a giant paywall gate, crowds of homeowners rushing in for free.
🔊 whoosh
46Paid members drop from three point three million to about two and a half.
Moran + cutout
Picture 17 coming
ANGIE ripping open a giant paywall gate, crowds of homeowners rushing in for free.
ANGIE ripping open a giant paywall gate, crowds of homeowners rushing in for free.
Text on screen: 3.3M → 2.5M
47And in November 2016
48it says the magic words: we're exploring strategic alternatives. That means: we're for sale.
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A big "FOR SALE" sign being hammered into the lawn of a corporate office building.
A big "FOR SALE" sign being hammered into the lawn of a corporate office building.
Text on screen: "STRATEGIC ALTERNATIVES" = FOR SALE
🔊 hammer
49So the bankers go shopping. They call sixty-two possible buyers.
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Two bankers at a desk wall-to-wall with phones, calling dozens of buyers, sticky notes everywhere.
Two bankers at a desk wall-to-wall with phones, calling dozens of buyers, sticky notes everywhere.
🔊 phone ring x3
50Twenty-eight sign an NDA, that's a promise to keep the secrets.
51And now everybody looks at the numbers. Angie's List: three hundred and twenty-three million in sales. Still losing money. HomeAdvisor: almost five hundred million in sales, growing thirty-eight percent a year.
52And here's the number that matters. The bankers looked at what similar companies were worth.
Moran
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Text on screen: DEAL ANALYSIS
53A company like Angie's List, slow, shrinking? About eight to ten times its yearly profit. A company like HomeAdvisor, fast and growing? Fifteen to twenty times.
Moran + cutout
Picture 20 coming
Two price tags side by side on a shelf: a small dusty tag on a slow old shop, a huge shiny tag on a fast modern one, same products inside.
Two price tags side by side on a shelf: a small dusty tag on a slow old shop, a huge shiny tag on a fast modern one, same products inside.
54Same industry. Same customers. Double the price tag. Remember that. That's the whole video.
55Now, due diligence. That's checking everything before you buy.
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A detective with a magnifying glass examining a huge pile of documents in a data room, frowning, papers flying.
A detective with a magnifying glass examining a huge pile of documents in a data room, frowning, papers flying.
Text on screen: DUE DILIGENCE
🔊 whoosh
56And here's what's interesting. In January 2017, IAC doesn't even bid. They say they haven't seen enough.
Moran + cutout
Picture 21 coming
A detective with a magnifying glass examining a huge pile of documents in a data room, frowning, papers flying.
A detective with a magnifying glass examining a huge pile of documents in a data room, frowning, papers flying.
57And the private equity firms? They all walk away. Because the business was in the middle of switching models. You can't borrow a lot of money against a company when you don't know what it's going to earn next year.
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A bank loan officer shaking his head and pushing a loan application back across the desk.
A bank loan officer shaking his head and pushing a loan application back across the desk.
58And this is a lesson for small deals. If a business is in the middle of changing how it makes money, the bank won't lend against it. So the only buyers left are the ones who already understand it. Usually, again, the competitor.
Moran
🎥 Moran
on camera
on camera
Text on screen: MY 2 CENTS
59So IAC comes back. And this time, it doesn't want to pay cash. It wants to pay with stock.
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LEVIN gluing two puzzle pieces labelled with house icons together into one big piece, DILLER watching.
LEVIN gluing two puzzle pieces labelled with house icons together into one big piece, DILLER watching.
Text on screen: FINANCING
🔊 whoosh
60Here's the idea. IAC puts HomeAdvisor and Angie's List into one brand-new company. Angie's List shareholders get a slice of that new company. And IAC keeps the rest.
Moran + cutout
Picture 23 coming
LEVIN gluing two puzzle pieces labelled with house icons together into one big piece, DILLER watching.
LEVIN gluing two puzzle pieces labelled with house icons together into one big piece, DILLER watching.
61And then they fight over the slice.
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Picture 24 coming
A tug of war over a pie chart between LEVIN and an Angie's List executive, the pie mostly on LEVIN's side.
A tug of war over a pie chart between LEVIN and an Angie's List executive, the pie mostly on LEVIN's side.
62IAC says ten percent. Angie's List says twenty-two. IAC says no. Eighteen? No. Thirteen? Twelve. Twelve and a half. And they land on thirteen percent.
63And here's the fun part. IAC keeps eighty-seven percent of the value, but ninety-eight percent of the votes.
64Because it gets special shares with extra voting power. So IAC is in charge. Forever.
Moran + cutout
Picture 25 coming
LEVIN holding a golden key labelled "VOTES" while handing out small plain keys to a crowd.
LEVIN holding a golden key labelled "VOTES" while handing out small plain keys to a crowd.
65And the big shareholders of Angie's List push back one more time. They want cash, just in case.
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A shareholder at a fork in the road: one sign says "$8.50 CASH", the other "SHARES", most of the crowd walking toward SHARES.
A shareholder at a fork in the road: one sign says "$8.50 CASH", the other "SHARES", most of the crowd walking toward SHARES.
66So IAC says fine. You can take eight dollars fifty in cash instead of the shares. But only up to a hundred and thirty million dollars in total.
67May 1st, 2017.
68Deal signed.
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LEVIN signing a big contract, a pen flourish, lawyers clapping.
LEVIN signing a big contract, a pen flourish, lawyers clapping.
🔊 pen scribble
69And the bankers? Each one got about ten million dollars.
70The CEO? A golden parachute worth about twelve million, if he lost his job after the deal.
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A CEO in a suit floating down with a golden parachute over Indianapolis, holding a briefcase.
A CEO in a suit floating down with a golden parachute over Indianapolis, holding a briefcase.
Text on screen: $12 MILLION · FILED
71Okay. Now watch what happens.
Moran
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Text on screen: MULTIPLE ARBITRAGE
72On the day the deal is announced, Angie's List's stock jumps sixty-one percent.
73And by the day it closes, the shares are worth twelve forty-six. Way more than the eight fifty in cash.
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A stock ticker board with an arrow jumping straight up, traders cheering.
A stock ticker board with an arrow jumping straight up, traders cheering.
Text on screen: $12.46
74So almost nobody takes the cash. Out of a hundred and thirty million available, people take one point nine million.
75October 2017, the new company starts trading. It's called ANGI Homeservices. And the stock market says it's worth about six billion dollars.
76A year later, eleven point six billion.
77So let me show you what just happened, because this is the trick. IAC paid about half a billion dollars for a company the market valued at eight to ten times profit.
Moran
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on camera
78It glued it onto a company the market valued at fifteen to twenty times profit. And now the whole thing gets the higher number.
Moran + cutout
Picture 31 coming
A small shop being placed onto a giant golden pedestal next to a skyscraper, its price tag growing bigger in mid-air.
A small shop being placed onto a giant golden pedestal next to a skyscraper, its price tag growing bigger in mid-air.
79That's multiple arbitrage. You buy at the small multiple, and you get valued at the big one.
80And look at IAC. Before the deal, HomeAdvisor made about forty-five million dollars of profit a year. After the deal, IAC's eighty-seven percent was worth about five point three billion dollars.
81That's more than a hundred times HomeAdvisor's profit. For a business that had been sitting inside IAC the whole time.
Moran
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Text on screen: 100x+
82And this is exactly how a roll-up works in your town. A small HVAC company or a pest control company sells for maybe three to five times its profit.
Moran
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Text on screen: MY 2 CENTS
83A group of twenty of them, with one brand, one system, one management team, can be worth ten times or more. Same trucks. Same customers. Different multiple. That gap is where the money is.
Moran + cutout
Picture 32 coming
A small HVAC van and a small pest control van, then twenty of them parked in formation under one shared brand banner, a big price tag above them.
A small HVAC van and a small pest control van, then twenty of them parked in formation under one shared brand banner, a big price tag above them.
Text on screen: 3–5x → 10x+
84But here's the catch. The multiple only stays high if the business keeps growing.
Moran
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Text on screen: INTEGRATION
85So now they have to actually merge two brands, two sales teams, two websites.
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Two office teams forced to share one desk, two logos being swapped on a building, chaos and boxes.
Two office teams forced to share one desk, two logos being swapped on a building, chaos and boxes.
🔊 whoosh
86They buy Handy, an app for cleaners and handymen.
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A handyman app on a giant phone with a cleaner and a handyman stepping out of the screen.
A handyman app on a giant phone with a cleaner and a handyman stepping out of the screen.
Text on screen: HANDY
🔊 pop
87In 2021 they rename everything to just Angi.
Picture
Picture 35 coming
A building sign being changed from two names to one short name by workers on ladders.
A building sign being changed from two names to one short name by workers on ladders.
Text on screen: ANGI
88And it doesn't hold. Sales go from about one point three six billion in 2023 to one point zero three billion in 2025.
89In 2026, they write off two hundred and twenty-five million dollars of what they paid for past deals.
90The CEO is replaced.
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Picture 36 coming
A big executive's chair being wheeled out of an office while a new CEO walks in.
A big executive's chair being wheeled out of an office while a new CEO walks in.
91And the company that was worth eleven point six billion? About two hundred and forty million. Down about ninety-eight percent.
92And remember the Angie's List shareholders who chose the stock instead of the eight fifty in cash?
Moran
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93Today, one of their old shares is worth about sixty cents.
Moran + cutout
Picture 37 coming
A shareholder holding one old share certificate that has shrunk to the size of a coin, staring at it.
A shareholder holding one old share certificate that has shrunk to the size of a coin, staring at it.
Text on screen: 60¢
🔊 sad trombone
94The ones who took the cash got eight fifty.
Moran + cutout
Picture 38 coming
A shareholder smiling and holding a neat stack of cash next to another shareholder holding a tiny shrunken certificate.
A shareholder smiling and holding a neat stack of cash next to another shareholder holding a tiny shrunken certificate.
Text on screen: $8.50
95That's the other side of multiple arbitrage. The multiple can go up fast. It can also come down fast.
Moran
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96And here's what nobody tells you. The business didn't die.
Moran
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Text on screen: MY 2 CENTS
97In 2025, Angi still made forty-three point eight million dollars of profit on a billion dollars of sales. It's a real, profitable business.
98What collapsed was the multiple. Wall Street stopped believing the growth story, so it stopped paying twenty times. Same company, much lower price.
Moran + cutout
Picture 39 coming
A healthy-looking business building still open and busy, while a giant price tag above it crashes down.
A healthy-looking business building still open and busy, while a giant price tag above it crashes down.
99So if you do a roll-up, the profit is yours. The multiple is borrowed.
100And now Angi is betting on AI. In January 2026 they cut about twelve percent of their staff and said they'd rebuild the company around AI.
101And honestly, this is a business AI is perfect for. Think about what Angi actually does.
Moran
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Text on screen: AI
102A homeowner says, my deck is rotting. Somebody has to understand the job, give a price range, find three good contractors nearby, and book the visit.
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Picture 40 coming
A friendly AI assistant on a phone screen talking to the HOMEOWNER at 2 am, showing a price range and three contractor cards.
A friendly AI assistant on a phone screen talking to the HOMEOWNER at 2 am, showing a price range and three contractor cards.
103That's all language and matching. An AI agent can do that at two in the morning, for every zip code, in every trade.
Moran + cutout
Picture 40 coming
A friendly AI assistant on a phone screen talking to the HOMEOWNER at 2 am, showing a price range and three contractor cards.
A friendly AI assistant on a phone screen talking to the HOMEOWNER at 2 am, showing a price range and three contractor cards.
Text on screen: 2 AM · EVERY ZIP CODE
104So if I bought a group of home service companies today, that's where I'd start. AI answers every call, gives a price range, books the job. And the humans do what humans do best. Show up at the door.
Picture
Picture 41 coming
A pest control office where AI on screens books jobs and sends quotes, while a friendly technician walks out the door to a van.
A pest control office where AI on screens books jobs and sends quotes, while a friendly technician walks out the door to a van.
105So let's recap the four lessons.
106One: your best buyer is usually your competitor. Two: if the business is changing how it makes money, the bank won't lend, so cash buyers disappear.
Moran
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Text on screen: 1. BEST BUYER = COMPETITOR · 2. NO LOANS MID-CHANGE
🔊 pop
107Three: multiple arbitrage is real. Buy small at a low multiple, become big at a high one. Four: the multiple is borrowed. Only the profit is yours. So build the profit first.
Moran
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Text on screen: 3. BUY LOW MULTIPLE · 4. PROFIT IS YOURS
🔊 pop
108So that's the deal. A list that started door to door, a five hundred million dollar price, an eleven billion dollar peak, and a ninety-eight percent fall. If you want to build a roll-up, buy small, merge it right, and keep it growing. And if you want me to break down another deal like this, tell me which one in the comments.
Moran
🎥 Moran
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109And Angie? She's still on the board.
Picture
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Older ANGIE (late 40s, same face) sitting at the head of a boardroom table, calm smile.
Older ANGIE (late 40s, same face) sitting at the head of a boardroom table, calm smile.
Text on screen: cut to black, no sound