The SMB M&A Pipeline: Q1 2024

Welcome to the Q1 2024 issue of The SMB M&A Pipeline. This quarterly series surfaces a top-of-the-funnel breakdown of the deal activity occurring on Axial’s platform. The aggregated metrics include quarterly deal volumes, financial and geographic characteristics, and pursuit rates, sorted by industry category.

All deal data is fully anonymized to protect the confidentiality of these transactions.

Pursuit Rates

“Pursuit rate” measures the rate at which Axial’s buyside members register interest in a deal that an Axial sell-side member has invited them to consider. If NDAs, IOIs, and LOIs reflect the deepening progression of interest among acquirers on a given deal, the pursuit rate is one step higher in the funnel than the signed NDA. It offers insight into the forward deal pipeline and the initial interest level of prospective Axial buyside members.

An Overview of Q1 2024

We saw 2,534 deals come to market in Q1, 8.62% lower compared to the same time period last year. Industrials was the only sector to see positive YoY deal flow (see table below). The Transportation sector had the most significant decrease, at 29.88%.

Deal Volume vs. Pursuit Rate

Despite ranking in the top three for overall deal volume in Q1, Food & Hospitality and Consumer Goods were at the bottom for pursuit rate, ranking 7th and 6th, respectively. Healthcare also had a significant discrepancy, ranking 5th in deal volume, but 1st in pursuit rate.

Below are industry-specific and overall deal activity tearsheets that lay out a complete breakdown of deal activity in Q1 on Axial. Feel free to share and incorporate the data into your materials as you see fit.

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