But juggling several balls - or pucks - at once is not difficult for Mr. Hicks, whose leveraged acquisitions in the last decade top $33 billion.

In 2009, Ropes & Gray advised on three of the largest leveraged acquisitions of the year, on three continents.

Need for a 'Fallback Position' Even so, companies that enter into stock-swap deals must be prepared to change the deal from a merger to a leveraged acquisition if a hostile bidder emerges.

The company said an investor group had acquired 4.9 percent of its stock and was interested in a possible leveraged acquisition.

Two investment firms are sponsoring new mutual funds to invest in companies involved in merger activity, despite lenders' reluctance to finance leveraged acquisitions.

That $183.6 million investment alone could probably furnish the equity portion in a leveraged acquisition, they said.

DESPITE lenders' growing reluctance to finance leveraged acquisitions, two investment firms are betting that they can profit by buying stocks of companies involved in buyouts.

Hicks's investment firm specializes in leveraged acquisitions in which it buys failing companies, resuscitates them and sells them.

A special case of a leveraged acquisition is a management buyout (MBO).

Mr. Rattner, 36 years old, will head a new group providing advice and financing in special situations, including restructurings, recapitalizations and leveraged acquisitions.