Merrill Answers Petrie's Plea

Updated from 9:21 a.m.

The IPO flare shot off last month by the investment-banking boutique Petrie Parkman did the trick.

Just weeks after Petrie Parkman filed for an initial public offering, Merrill Lynch(MER Quote) announced Monday that it is buying the Denver-based investment firm for an undisclosed sum. The boutique, which specializes in providing merger advisory services to the energy and utility sector, had planned to raise $115 million in the stock offering.

The acquisition will enable Merrill Lynch to bolster its energy investment banking business. A year ago, the big Wall Street firm got back into the energy trading business, after exiting energy trading in aftermath of the collapse of Enron. ...