Although time was limited, several questions still remained. Was an offer price above $106 per share in the best interest of Sherwin-Williams's stockholders based on the stand-alone value of Valspar and the projected synergies? What maximum price could be justied in a bidding contest? What was the probability that antitrust regulators would eventually block the deal, resulting in a waste of time and resources to structure a deal that would later collapse? Was there a way to structure the merger agreement to allow for a potential consent decree