M&A Deal Value and Volume Tick Up in March

U.S. M&A deal activity increased in March, up 3% with 891 announcements compared to 865 in February. Aggregate M&A spending increased as well. In March, 51% more was spent on deals compared to February.

Only four of the 21 sectors tracked by FactSet Mergerstat posted relative gains in deal flow over the last three months compared to the same three months one year prior. The sectors that saw increases in M&A deal activity, relative to the same three-month period one year ago, were: Communications (51 vs. 35), Transportation (66 vs. 58), Electronic Technology (91 vs. 87), and Miscellaneous (15 vs. 13). 

Over the past three months, the sectors that have seen the biggest declines in M&A deal volume, relative to the same three-month period one year ago have been: Finance (358 vs. 420), Technology Services (450 vs. 510), Distribution Services (128 vs. 186), Consumer Services (188 vs. 235), and Commercial Services (456 vs. 497). Fifteen of the 21 sectors tracked by FactSet Mergerstat posted negative relative losses in deal flow over the last three months compared to the same three months one year prior, for a combined loss of 475 deals.

March's Biggest Deals 

Topping the list of the largest deals announced in March were:

• Cigna Corp. entered an agreement to acquire Express Scripts Holding Co. for $53.9 billion
• International Paper Co. submitted an unsolicited proposal to acquire Smurfit Kappa Group Plc for $11.2 billion
• Microchip Technology, Inc.'s agreement to acquire Microsemi Corp. for $8.1 billion
• Dana, Inc.'s deal to acquire GKN Plc's driveline division for $6.2 billion
• Gebr Knauf KG's proposal to acquire the remaining 89.54% stake in USG Corp. for $5.3 billion