Eide Bailly hangs shingle after Muckel acquisition

The acquisition of Muckel Anderson CPAs was 10 years in the making.

Eide Bailly LLP, a regional accounting firm headquartered at Fargo, N.D., said last week it’s acquiring Reno-based Muckel Anderson. Terms of the transaction, which will close Nov. 3, weren’t disclosed.

Butch Anderson, managing partner of Muckel Anderson, will serve as partner-in-charge of the office, which will assume the Eide Bailly LLP name.

Dave Stende, the managing partner and chief executive officer of Eide Bailly, said the relationship between the two firms developed during the last decade after Muckel Anderson became affiliated with Practicewise, an Eide Bailly program that provides specialized resources and support to CPA firms.

Anderson said the long-developing relationship was important to principals of the Reno firm, too.

“We’ve had many years to get to know the Eide Bailly partners and staff because of Practicewise, and we have nothing but respect for how Eide Bailly operates as a firm,” he said.

Anderson said the transaction will free partners from many administrative tasks and allow them to focus on client service and staff development.

The acquisition marks the first foray into Nevada by Eide Bailly, which will operate 25 offices after the Muckel Anderson CPAs transaction closes.

Eide Bailly operates in 12 states, all of them west of the Mississippi. It employs 1,469 professionals, including 214 partners.

Stende said the company has been looking to strengthen its presence in the Intermountain West, and it was drawn by the re-emergence of Reno as a strong business center after the recession.

“This is a great time to enter northern Nevada,” he said.

Eide Bailly’s practice focuses on mid-sized organizations in fields that include health care, government, nonprofits and renewable energy.