Merger and acquisition (M&A) activity in the North American and global packaging industry continues to show signs of growth, according to a new BMO Capital Markets study, Mergers and Acquisitions in the Packaging Industry: 2010 Annual Deal Review. A key finding was that global deal volume increased 35 percent from 2009 levels to 227 packaging transactions.
“The challenging conditions that plagued the M&A market in 2008 and 2009 began to improve in 2010,” said Doug Lawson, managing director and head of the BMO Capital Markets Packaging Group. “Both strategic and financial buyers began to resume acquisition activity in 2010 and are expected to remain active in 2011, as a result of improving conditions in the overall economy and the credit markets.”
M&A activity strengthened across all regions of the world, with North American activity increasing 18 percent to 79 transactions. Median reported Enterprise Value / EBITDA multiple increased to 7.0x from 6.1x in 2009. Strategic acquirers continued to account for the majority of global M&A activity, with 63 percent of 2010 deal volume; however, private equity acquirers accounted for the majority of North American M&A activity with 58 percent of 2010 deal volume.
To request a copy of the Mergers & Acquisitions in the Packaging Industry: Annual Deal Review, visit http://www.bmocm.com/industry/us/industrials/packaging/.
