A buy-out occurs where a controlling proportion of a firm's shares are purchased by a single party.

A term often heard is "management buy-out" which means the management buys company shares to become the owner of that company.

Another type of buy-out is where a company buys back shares in itself that it has previously sold off, thereby taking itself off the stock market and turning itself back into a private firm.

See takeover, reverse takeover, corporate raiders