In 2012, the wireless company T-Mobile sold some of its cell towers to the Crown Castle company.

When the agreement was announced, the stock price of Crown Castle declined. An article in the Wall Street Journal observed:

“Analysts say investors likely priced in much of the deal during the runup to its announcement.”

a. What does it mean to say that investors had “priced in” the deal before its announcement?

b. If the gains are priced in and you bought shares of Crown Castle on the basis of the profits you expect the company to earn from having bought some of T-Mobile’s cell towers, would you be likely to earn above-average returns on your investment?