Know What's Happening in M&A
Know What's Happening in M&A
Netflix has formally withdrawn its bid to acquire part of Warner Bros. Discovery after Paramount raised its offer to $31 per share, valuing the deal around $77 billion. Netflix’s own proposal, previously estimated at $72 billion, was deemed too costly, and the streamer will collect a $2.8 billion breakup fee. Paramount now stands as the sole bidder and expects to navigate antitrust approval, with a clause to increase the price if the transaction stalls past September 2026. The move underscores the financial limits of streaming giants pursuing large‑scale acquisitions.
Healthcare M&A activity surged in 2025, with financial distress driving a record 43% of transactions. Regulatory scrutiny intensified, highlighted by California’s new law tightening oversight of private‑equity deals. Major deals included UnitedHealth’s $3.3 billion acquisition of Amedisys, Baptist Memorial’s $55 million purchase of...
Two bipartisan lawmakers introduced the Keep It Moving Act to impose strict shot clocks on Federal Communications Commission merger reviews, formalizing the agency's informal 180‑day deadline. If the FCC exceeds the timeline, applicants could seek a court order to compel...
Cascades announced a $100 million target for additional divestitures by mid‑2026 as it exits honeycomb and partition packaging segments and shuts three plants. The company sold its Richmond corrugated plant for $69 million, boosting cash flow and helping meet its $120 million asset‑sale...
International Paper announced it will separate into two independent companies—one focused on North America and the other on Europe—after CEO Andy Silvernail highlighted regional strengths at the BofA 2026 Global Agriculture and Materials Conference. The split follows the $1.5 billion sale...
Marcom M&A activity in 2025 edged higher to 55 deals, reflecting a modest rise from 2024 but still far below the 2016 peak. The sector’s focus has shifted from expansion‑driven roll‑ups to infrastructure‑led consolidation centered on AI, cloud, and data...
Medtech M&A kicks off 2026 with several multibillion‑dollar deals. Boston Scientific announced a $14.5 billion acquisition of Penumbra, while Danaher disclosed a $9.9 billion purchase of Masimo. At the same time, major divestitures are underway, including BD’s planned $17.5 billion sale of its...
Green Value GmbH assisted Balance Erneuerbare Energien GmbH in acquiring a 46 MW portfolio of biogas plants located in Saxony, Saxony‑Anhalt and Mecklenburg‑Vorpommern. The transaction includes technical due diligence and risk assessment performed by Green Value, with plans to modernize and...
Shift4 Payments reported record Q4 results and announced a strategic pivot toward international growth. The company closed a $2.5 billion acquisition of Swiss tax‑free shopping platform Global Blue and added Australia‑based Smartpay to its portfolio. To capitalize on these assets, Shift4 is...
The European Commission has approved Azerbaijan’s state oil company SOCAR to acquire 99.82% of Italy’s Italiana Petroli, including its two refineries and a network of roughly 4,500 fuel stations. The deal adds about 10 million tonnes per year of crude‑processing capacity to...
Owners of a concierge medical practice attempted a sale, but the first Letter of Intent (LOI) collapsed, leaving them to restart the process. They turned to Axial's Advisor Finder, which quickly presented four vetted M&A advisors with healthcare expertise. After...
Omnicom Group announced its merger with Interpublic (IPG), creating a larger advertising conglomerate but triggering thousands of job cuts. The combined firm’s 10‑K highlights significant integration risks, including talent uncertainty, higher‑than‑expected costs, and possible loss of clients and vendors. Management...
José Feliciano, co‑founder and managing partner of Clearlake Capital, told PE Hub that AI‑driven disruption in public tech and software markets is opening compelling opportunities in the private‑equity space. He explained that as public valuations compress, investors can target companies...
Kraft Heinz’s recent decision to pause a split underscores a broader crisis for legacy packaged‑food firms. The company’s relentless focus on zero‑based budgeting and margin expansion delivered short‑term cash flow but culminated in a $15.4 billion goodwill impairment, exposing the limits...
Private equity activity this week highlighted a renewed focus on consumer‑oriented businesses, with multiple platform investments ranging from women’s footwear to home‑health and fitness equipment. Notable deals include Gordon Brothers’ purchase of Chinese Laundry, Kinderhook’s $1.1 billion take‑private of Enhabit, and...
EnCap Flatrock Midstream is exploring a sale of its gas‑pipeline subsidiary Momentum Midstream for a price exceeding $5 billion. The private‑equity firm has engaged advisers and is gauging interest from rivals and other buy‑out funds. Momentum operates roughly 4,000 miles of...
CesiumAstro announced the acquisition of AI‑focused startup Vidrovr to embed artificial intelligence into its space‑based communications payloads. The deal, closed in late 2025, adds multimodal signal‑analysis and edge‑computing capabilities to CesiumAstro’s software‑defined phased‑array systems, including the Element satellite. By integrating...
Phantom Space has acquired launch assets from the defunct Vector Launch, including flight‑proven design elements and engineering data. The assets will be integrated into Phantom’s Daytona two‑stage rocket to cut development risk and accelerate its schedule. Phantom, which has raised...
Pfizer has signed a global gene‑editing partnership with Beam Therapeutics, reviving its genetics ambitions after withdrawing the hemophilia B therapy Beqvez a year earlier. The agreement includes a $300 million upfront payment and up to $1.05 billion in milestones, granting Pfizer exclusive worldwide...
Intermarché Belgium’s 2022 acquisition of the Mestdagh franchise doubled its store count but triggered operational chaos, leading to multiple bankruptcies and legal disputes. Independent shopkeepers report tens of millions of euros in debt as the group allegedly shifts invoices onto...
Tencent is in talks to acquire a small equity stake in Hungry Studio, the Hong‑Kong developer behind the hyper‑popular mobile title Block Blast. The game now boasts 70 million daily active users and 300 million monthly users, up from 40 million DAU a...
Strategic review under activist pressure w/ ~70% upside - Prominent activist pushing for full sale + plans to replace majority of board - AGM a few months away - Stock at all-time lows (~4x EBITDA) - One seg. sale announced; board now pressured to...
Oaktree Capital is weighing a sale or a London IPO for its UK wealth‑management platform Utmost, signaling renewed interest in public market exits for private‑equity‑owned financial services. Meanwhile, Carlyle’s US buyout platform is on track to realise nearly $12 billion in...
EG Group announced it will sell its French operating business, including 260 convenience and fuel sites, to co‑founder Zuber Issa’s vehicle EG On Move via a put option. The divestiture follows a staged exit that began with the sale of...
HaystackID announced the acquisition of eDiscovery AI, a data‑intelligence startup focused on AI‑driven electronic discovery solutions. The deal builds on a pre‑existing partnership and is aimed at bolstering HaystackID's generative AI capabilities across its legal‑tech platform. By integrating eDiscovery AI's...
Sigma Healthcare reported double‑digit growth in its first‑half fiscal results, driven by the Chemist Warehouse network. Revenue rose 15% to $5.5 billion, normalised EBIT increased 18.7% to $582.9 million, and NPAT grew 19.2% to $392 million. Chemist Warehouse sales jumped 17.2% to $5.1 billion,...
AMC Theatres CEO Adam Aron highlighted the growing partnership with Netflix, noting that exclusive theatrical events such as the KPop Demon Hunters premiere and the Stranger Things series finale drove 35% of the film's total audience and generated $15 million in...
Axel Springer CEO Mathias Döpfner announced his support for an eleventh‑hour bid to acquire the UK broadsheet The Telegraph. He and a small group of conservative transatlantic investors are mobilizing financing for Dovid Efune, the publisher of the New York Sun, to...
Netflix CEO Ted Sarandos will say he looks long term, but if Netflix ups its bid for WBD, investors who clearly are skeptical about the deal — even as is — may get even more concerned: why does Netflix want...
Blue Owl climbed quickly on Wall Street. One of its arms floated an idea to create a Mt Rushmore of private equity. But those pitched saw the firm’s own fractiousness as the plan’s big flaw. @EricGPlatt & I look at the...
Middleby Corp completed the sale of a 51% stake in its Residential Kitchen segment, generating $565 million in cash and retaining a 49% interest. The company accelerated share repurchases, buying back $960 million of stock and cutting the share count by roughly...
Who survives the Warner merger mania? Org Chart From Hell: ‘Too Many Tentacles for One Octopus’ Latest @Lesleygoldberg https://t.co/No87HnVyFd
The WBD board is "delivering significant value to WBD shareholders throughout the [sales] process" -- Warner CEO David Zaslav
GigaCloud Technology reported record Q3 2025 revenue of $333 million, a 10% year‑over‑year increase, and a quarterly EPS of $0.99. Growth was powered by a 70% surge in European revenue, bringing the region to $100 million, while product revenue rose 16% YoY...
Stripe may be gearing up for a mega-deal by eyeing PayPal at a $159B tender valuation. If it happens, it would reshape the payments landscape and reignite competition in digital finance. Big bets like this show how fast fintech’s strategic plays are...
The Robertson Patman Act,, sometimes rumored to be dead, alive and kicking Costco (or sellers to Costco) in California
Viatris reported Q4 2025 revenue of $3.76 billion, a 1% decline year‑over‑year, but achieved 1% operational revenue growth when the indoor‑facility impact is excluded. Strong commercial performance drove double‑digit sales gains in Greater China (+9%), emerging markets (+7%) and Europe (+1%)....
Broadcasters are buoyed by FCC Chair Brendan Carr’s hints of relaxed ownership rules and a Trump endorsement of Nexstar’s $6 billion Tegna acquisition. Nexstar, Scripps and Sinclair all highlighted this regulatory optimism in recent earnings calls, stressing strategic M&A and operational...
Ecovyst reported Q2 2025 Ecoservices sales of $176 million, a 14% year‑over‑year increase driven by higher sulfur pass‑throughs and the newly acquired Wagaman site. Adjusted EBITDA reached just under $56 million, surpassing the top end of its non‑GAAP guidance. The company closed...
Privia Health reported a robust 2025, with implemented providers rising 12.3% to 5,380 and attributed lives increasing 22.7% to 1.54 million. Practice collections grew 16.9% to $3.47 billion and adjusted EBITDA surged 38.8% to $125.5 million, delivering a 130% free‑cash‑flow conversion. The company...
TopBuild reported a 5% decline in Q2 2025 sales to $1.3 billion, driven by a low‑double‑digit drop in residential volume while commercial and industrial segments grew. The company highlighted the recent Progressive Roofing acquisition, which adds roughly $215 million of second‑half sales...
Nomad Foods reported a strong fourth‑quarter 2020, posting 9.5% organic revenue growth and a 31.5% gross‑margin – the highest in over two years. Adjusted EBITDA rose to EUR119 million and adjusted EPS to EUR0.38, while free cash flow hit a record...
KBR reported a solid fourth‑quarter 2020, highlighting a 20% increase in government and technology backlog and a 15% rise in adjusted EBITDA. The company emphasized its transition to Sustainable Technology Solutions, targeting over $1 billion in revenue and mid‑teens margins for...
Loar Holdings reported record Q2 2025 sales of $123 million, a 13% year‑over‑year increase driven by commercial aftermarket, OEM and defense segments. Adjusted EBITDA rose to a record $38.3% margin, up 220 basis points, despite added public‑company costs. Management lifted full‑year...
The United States faces an unprecedented wave of small‑business ownership transitions as baby‑boomers retire, with an estimated six million SMBs hitting the market by 2035 and over $5 trillion in enterprise value at stake. Only about one‑million firms are deemed viable for...
EnPro Industries reported a strong fourth‑quarter 2025, with revenue climbing 14.3% to $295.4 million and adjusted EBITDA rising 19.2% to $69.4 million, delivering adjusted diluted EPS of $1.99, up nearly 27%. Both Sealing Technologies and Advanced Surface Technologies posted double‑digit sales growth,...
Rocket Companies forecast adjusted Q4 2025 revenue of roughly $2.1 billion, driven by the recent Redfin and Mr. Cooper acquisitions. Operating expenses are expected to rise to about $2 billion, reflecting integration costs and severance. The Redfin deal now fuels 13% of...
Fox Factory reported fiscal Q4 2025 revenue of $361.1 million, a 2.3% increase, and full‑year sales of $1.47 billion, up 5.3%. Gross margin slipped to 28.3% from 28.9% amid product‑mix shifts and tariff headwinds, and the company recorded a $295 million non‑cash...
Anthropic announced the acquisition of Vercept, a Seattle‑based AI startup known for its computer‑use agent Vy, and will retire the product by March 25. Vercept, which raised $50 million from investors including Eric Schmidt and Jeff Dean, joins Anthropic’s Claude Code team following a...
Clearfield CEO Cheri Beranek says Verizon's acquisition of Frontier creates a major growth opportunity for the fiber‑connectivity supplier. The combined Verizon‑Frontier network will cover over 25 million premises across 31 states, expanding demand for Clearfield’s equipment and its new NOVA platform....
