Winners and Losers of the Shutterfly/Lifetouch combination

The photo industry’s biggest merger in years has brought up rampant speculation among competitors, vendors gadflies about the Shutterfly acquisition of Lifetouch. Details of the combination are still coming out, but it’s clear there is a short-term positive reception. Shutterfly’s stock rose to more than $70 a share, after being mired in the mid-$50 range for months.

From a financial/stock analyst point of view, the Shutterfly/Lifetouch deal makes sense, as we wrote here last week. Despite the combined production capabilities…