U.S. M&A deal activity decreased in July, going down 3.6% with 1,038 announcements compared to 1,077 in June. However, aggregate M&A spending increased. In July, 58.5% more was spent on deals compared to June.
In terms of M&A deal activity, 4 of the 21 sectors tracked by FactSet saw an increase in M&A deal activity over the past three months relative to the same three-month period one year ago: Non-Energy Minerals (83 vs. 61), Electronic Technology (82 vs. 67), Technology Services (742 vs. 732) and Miscellaneous (19 vs. 15).
On the other hand, 17 of the 21 sectors tracked by FactSet saw a decrease in M&A deal activity over the past three months relative to the same three-month period one year ago. The five sectors that witnessed the largest declines in M&A deal volume were: Finance (594 vs. 699), Distribution Services (107 vs. 161), Health Services (79 vs. 121), Producer Manufacturing (175 vs. 209) and Industrial Services (181 vs. 206).
Topping the list of the largest deals announced in July are: Union Pacific Corp. entering an agreement to acquire Norfolk Southern Corp. for $71.4 billion; Palo Alto Networks, Inc., agreeing to acquire CyberArk Software Ltd. for $23.8 billion; Waters Corp. to acquire the business and assets related to biosciences & diagnostic solutions from Becton Dickinson & Co. for $10.3 billion; Baker Hughes Co.'s agreement to acquire Chart Industries, Inc., for $9.5 billion; Merck & Co, Inc., agreeing to acquire Verona Pharma Plc for $9.4 billion.
This blog post is for informational purposes only. The information contained in this blog post is not legal, tax, or investment advice. FactSet does not endorse or recommend any investments and assumes no liability for any consequence relating directly or indirectly to any action or inaction taken based on the information contained in this article.