Dealmaker is a quarterly electronic newsletter produced by Grant Thornton Corporate Finance LLC, providing business owners and managers with merger and acquisition market insight.

Related Documents

	Dealmaker – Spring 2009 The Spring 2009 issue of Dealmaker includes timely planning information for privately held and family-owned business clients; a quarterly market update featuring an overview of U.S. and international M&A activity and highlights from Grant Thornton Corporate Finance’s most recent industry overviews focusing on the Aerospace and Food & Beverage sectors, which are available in the “Industries” section of this web site.
	Dealmaker - Winter 2008/09 This issue of Dealmaker includes: a discussion of the challenges, and benefits, of private equity funding for family-owned businesses; an analysis of M&A activity for the first 11 months of 2008, which showed an impressive shift to lower-middle-market transactions, where acceptable deal metrics remain abundant.
	Dealmaker - Winter 2007 Grant Thornton Corporate Finance LLC recently concluded its second annual mid-market valuation study. Read about the current mid-market valuation trends and the impact and relevance of revenue multiples and how these findings could impact your company.
	Dealmaker - Fall 2006 The heightened activity caused by strong corporate earnings coupled with aggressive interest by U.S. strategic buyers, foreign acquirers, and, most importantly, private equity investors have caused one of the strongest merger and acquisition (M&A) cycles the market has ever seen. With all of these players converging on the market at the same time, valuations have risen to the highest levels in years.
	Dealmaker - Winter 2006 Middle-market business valuations have reached their highest levels in years according to a new valuation study conducted by Grant Thornton Corporate Finance. Based on the proprietary study, the median enterprise value to EBITDA multiple on middle-market transactions closed or announced during 2005 was 9.4x, representing a 16 percent increase over the median multiple in 2004.
	Dealmaker - Fall 2005 Strategic buyers have returned to the market and so it seems have strategic valuations. Based on a Grant Thornton Corporate Finance study of 68 middle-market strategic transactions announced or closed during the first nine months of 2005, the median enterprise value to EBITDA multiple paid was 10.5 times.
	Dealmaker - Summer 2005 With transaction volume at nearly $94 billion, 2004 was a blockbuster year for leveraged buyouts (LBOs). It is estimated that Private Equity Group (PEG) backed transactions now represent approximately 10 percent of the market, up from only 5 percent historically.
	Dealmaker - Winter 2005 In 2004, the merger and acquisition (M&A) market picked considerably. According to Mergerstat, 9,783 net merger and acquisition (M&A) transactions were announced in 2004, representing a 23 percent increase over 2003 and the highest recorded activity since the 2000 peak.
	Dealmaker - Fall 2004 While overall deal volume was up 16 percent in the 12 months ending July 31, 2004, the largest increase by wide margin was the consumer industry, which grew at a brisk 38 percent pace. Included in this general industry grouping are segments such as retail, apparel, entertainment and leisure, food processing, beverages and broadcasting.
	Dealmaker - Summer 2004 When discussing their business objectives and strategic alternatives, companies often face unexpected issues. A leveraged recapitalization can be an important liquidity tool in these situations, allowing a business to attract new capital to fund a significant dividend to shareholders.
	Dealmaker - Spring 2004 According to Mergerstat, 7,983 net merger & acquisition (M&A) transactions were announced in 2003, representing a nine percent increase over 2002, reversing a two-year downward trend. The number of transactions performed during 2003 was twice the long-term average of approximately 4,000 transactions per year.