“Material Adverse Effect” means any Effect which, individually or in the aggregate, (A) has had, or would reasonably be expected to have, a material adverse effect on the business, assets, financial condition, results of operations or financial prospects of the Company and its Subsidiaries, taken as a whole, or (B) would prevent the Company from consummating the Transactions on or before the End Date; provided, that none of the following shall be deemed in and of themselves, either alone or in combination, to constitute, and none of the following shall be taken into account in determining whether there is, or would reasonably be expected to be, a Material Adverse Effect:   (i)            any Effect generally affecting the U.S. or foreign economies, financial or securities markets, or political, legislative, or regulatory conditions, or the industries in which the Company and its Subsidiaries operate;   (ii)            any Effect arising out of or otherwise relating to fluctuations in the value of any currency exchange, interest or inflation rates or tariffs;     (iii)            any Effect arising out of or otherwise relating to any change (or proposed change) in, or any compliance with or action taken for the purpose of complying with, any Law or GAAP (or interpretations of any Law or GAAP);    (iv)            any Effect arising out of or otherwise relating to any act of terrorism, cyberterrorism (whether or not or sponsored by a Governmental Body), outbreak of hostilities, acts of war, trade war, national or international calamity or any other similar event (or the escalation of any of the foregoing);   


(v)            any acts of god, natural disasters, force majeure events, weather or environmental events, health emergencies, pandemics (including COVID-19) or epidemics (or the escalation of any of the foregoing and any governmental or industry responses thereto), including any COVID-19 Measures;   (vi)            any change in the market price or trading volume of the Company’s stock or change in the Company’s credit ratings;   (vii)            the failure of the Company to meet internal or analysts’ expectations, projections, forecasts, guidance or estimates, including the results of operations of the Company and its Subsidiaries, taken as a whole;   (viii)            any Effect or other matter resulting from the announcement of this Agreement and the Transactions, including any Transaction Legal Proceeding, any Effect related to the identity of Parent, Purchaser or any of their Affiliates or Representatives, or facts and circumstances relating thereto, or any loss or threatened loss of, or adverse change or threatened adverse change in, the relationship of the Company or any of its Subsidiaries with any of their current or prospective suppliers, customers, wholesalers, service providers, distributors, licensors, licensees, regulators, employees, creditors, stockholders or other third parties (other than for purposes of any representation or warranty contained in Section 4.5 (Non- Contravention) but subject to disclosures in Section 4.5 of the Company Disclosure Schedule);   

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  (ix)            any Effect arising out of or otherwise directly relating to (A) any action taken by the Company at the written direction or written approval of Parent or Purchaser, or (B) any action specifically required to be taken by the Company or the failure of the Company to take any action that the Company is specifically prohibited from taking by the terms of this Agreement (including due to Parent not granting a consent requested by the Company pursuant to this Agreement);   (x)            any Effect arising out of or relating to Parent’s or Purchaser’s breach of this Agreement; and   (xi)            any actions taken by Parent, any of its Affiliates (including Purchaser) or their respective Representatives;    provided, however, that in the cases of clauses (i) through (v) (other than COVID-19 Measures), such exclusion shall only be applicable to the extent such matter does not have a materially disproportionate Effect on the Company and its Subsidiaries, taken as a whole, relative to other companies in the industries in which the Company and its Subsidiaries operate that are of a similar size to the Company and its Subsidiaries, taken as a whole, in which case such Effect shall be taken into account only to the extent of such materially disproportionate Effect on the Company and its Subsidiaries, taken as a whole; provided, further, that in the cases of clauses (vi) and (vii), the underlying causes of any such Effect may be considered in determining whether a Material Adverse Effect occurred to the extent not otherwise excluded by another exception in this definition; and provided, further, that none of clauses (i) through (xi) are to be construed as including the commencement or pendency of any Legal Proceeding against the Company or any of its Subsidiaries (except for the specific Transaction Legal Proceeding exception in clause (viii)). (Pages 7-8)

Question: MAE Definition
Category: Material Adverse Effect
Answer: business and operation of Target, ability to consummate transaction