Items Tagged with

Featured

2016 Year in Review

EXCEEDING EXPECTATIONS! Looking Back and Leaping Forward

-

Looking back, it was a very good year.

In 2016, 14 closed deals demonstrate the solid expertise of FOCUS both in the spectrum of sectors engaged as well as in the variety of strategic services successfully deployed.

In 2017, we anticipate a climate rich in M&A deal-making opportunities. According to Mergers & Acquisitions, “For companies …

Investors Point to Exit Strategies for Startups

and -

Investors Point to Exit Strategies for Startups

Based on an interview of George M. Shea, Partner and IT Team Leader, and Manan K. Shah, Managing Partner, FOCUS Investment Banking LLC

You’ve scaled and done all the hard work. Should you prepare your startup for exit? How do you know if your business is ready for a sale or acquisition? As a CEO, it’s important to have your affairs in order before putting it up to the highest bidder. From financial to operational preparation, it’s important to take your time and not take the first offer on the table.

PREPPING THE PRINCESS: Criteria for Preparing to Sell

and -

hands forming an illustrated upward arrow Selling a business comes with a lot of uncertainties. While a would-be seller can’t always control which parties are interested in buying, the seller does control the way the business is managed and scaled leading up to the sale—and the way they use their leverage in negotiations. FOCUS Partners George Shea and Manan Shah discuss the current selling climate, typical exit process, and the importance of a strong management team.
businessman making notes with a pen sitting at a desk

A Walk on the Buy-Side: How FOCUS Is Perfecting the Process

-

Worldwide, the art of dealmaking is evolving. There are substantial modifications in the way deals are being done today. Every detail from due diligence and integration to strategic planning and channels of communication is being refined and improved. Careful coordination is ever more critical. Risk management tools are being reshaped and perfected—plus, there’s a razor-sharp focus on ensuring the acquirer is achieving maximum value.
engine controls on a boat

Full Speed Ahead for Middle Market M&A

-

A variety of new research reports conclude the fundamentals for healthy dealmaking remain firmly in place, and most believe the worst of the year is over. In fact, it appears U.S. M&A is normalizing and positive results for Q4 may be expected. Although the numbers for the first half of 2016 were the lowest since 2013, they actually are higher than any first half from 2008 through 2013. Why? Perhaps this is a signal the M&A boom of recent years remains alive and well, if a bit diminished.
Jonathan Wilfong on CEO Exclusive Radio

What Middle-Market CEOs Need to Know Now: Part 1

Q: In 2015, we heard a lot about how favorable the market was for acquisitions. What’s happening with deals in investment banking now? WILFONG: Indeed, 2015 was a very robust year for deals in the lower middle-market space which FOCUS defines as companies that do up to 250 million in revenue. This activity was driven by a couple of factors...

Large M&A Sellers Consistently Get Higher Prices than Small Sellers

-

illustrated tree in the shape of a dollar sign with a man propped up against it on a ladder maintaining the branches 2015 FactSet statistics show that large M&A transactions had higher value multiples than small deals—and the premium is about 30 percent. Median EV/EBITDA multiples for deals exceeding $250 million approximated 12.4x, while the ratio for middle-market transactions was 9.5x. This phenomenon of higher multiples for larger deals has been persistent over time.
a satelite tower pictured in a sunset scene

Playing the Trends in Middle Market Telecom

-

More than 20 years after the rise of the Internet and the advent of the modern telecommunications industry, telecommunications continues to be an extremely dynamic industry. With so many of the industry headlines centering around behemoth service providers such as AT&T and Verizon or tech giants like Ericsson or Google, it might appear the massive amount of industry consolidation has left little room for middle market telecommunication companies or their investors.
a car crash involving a blue car smashed into the back of a black car

Private Equity Backed Collision Repair Transactions in 2014

-

The volume of transactions concluded by the Big Four consolidators in 2014 far exceeded any expectations we might have had even as late as NACE in July. Only the consolidators themselves knew the extent of their acquisition possibilities when the year started. When the dust settled, the total number of acquired and new shops for the Big 4 exceeded 374 - on a beginning base of 614 shops. Fifty percent growth in a single year!