Survey: Texas cautious on M&A - Houston Business Journal:

lebexab.wordpress.com
According to a mid-year survey of middle market investment bankers, private equity professionals, attorneys and accountants workingon M&A deals in the Lone Star 45 percent expect activity to increased in the third and fourth quarters, whiled 47 percent expect business to remain the same. The released Wednesday, is sponsored by the and . The biggestg obstacle to deal-making, according to the is the gap between buyerzsand sellers.
Thirty-six percent of respondents said sellers were unwillinbg to do a deal at the multipledbeing offered, while 22 percent said uncertainty over the evolvingv political and tax environmen t was another roadblock, up from four percent in the previous survet in December. Because of the effects of the more than half of the respondents said they expected distressedx deals to make up a significanty portionof M&A transactions.
What’d more, 63 percent of private equity respondents said they were actively pursuing distressed compan acquisitions as part of an existiny or newlyadopted “Though the Texas economy is one of the best, givem all that has happened over the past nine months it’w not surprising to see a softer M&A market in That said, many Texas M&AA professionals are creatively working to add value to existinv businesses,” said Jeffrey managing partner with and presiden t of ACG Houston. According to Thomsonb Reuters, the volume of worldwide M&As deals was $480 billion in the first quarteof 2009, down 28 percent from the year-earliet period.
Middle market deals underr $500 million were particularly affected, dipping by 48 percent to $98 billiobn — the first quarterly period under $100 billion sincd 1996.