California regional M&A update: H2 2021

M&A activity in the California region continues to rise in H2 2021

In the second half of 2021, California middle market M&A activity continued its positive trend seen in the first half of the year as businesses become more comfortable in a post-pandemic business environment. While the fourth quarter saw some receding activity, M&A activity in H2 2021 was largely positive with:

• 184 closed transactions, up from 144 closed transactions seen in first half of the year
• $38.9 billion disclosed deal value, the highest ever recorded for a half-year period

California middle market M&A transactions

Number of closed transactions (1)

Source: S&P Capital IQ
(1) Includes only transactions with disclosed enterprise value between $10 million and $1 billion.

Information technology leads M&A activity

The information technology sector continued its lead in number of closed transactions in H2 2021, accounting for a significant 33% of deals. Coming in at a distant second and third were the healthcare and consumer discretionary segments with 16% and 14% of transaction volume, respectively.

H2 2021 California middle market M&A transactions

Number of transactions by industry sector (1) (2)

Source: S&P Capital IQ
(1) Includes only transactions with disclosed enterprise value between $10 million and $1 billion.