Intersections: Q4 2013 Transportation & Logistics Industry Mergers and Acquisitions Analysis

Mergers and acquisitions in the transportation and logistics (T&L) sector closed strong, but the weak pace of M&A announcements earlier in 2013 kept annual volume and value totals near ten-year lows.

In 2014, acquirers are expected to continue their focus on local deals. Valuations seem likely to remain high.

Several trends are expected to affect the values and locations of deals in the T&L sector, including:

• US and Eurozone announcements remain well below pre-economic crisis levels.
• The geographic focus on deal activity has generally shifted toward emerging markets such as China.
• Local-market deals are popular, and the industry is trending toward fewer and smaller deals.
• Infrastructure targets accounted for the majority of mega deals in 2013.
• With US airline consolidation mostly complete, activity is likely to focus more on cross-border minority stakes and antitrust immunity agreements.
• Shipping deals may increase, although anti-competition laws mean that alliances and vessel sharing agreements are more likely than large M&A deals.
• Trucking and logistics seem ripe for consolidation.

Intersections, a quarterly analysis of global merger and acquisition (M&A) activity in the T&L industry, provides an overview of the most recent M&A results and our expectations for future deal activity.