M&A
“I’m grateful for the exceptional support and insight provided by the EFCG team during my tenure as CEO of Anser Advisory and our subsequent sale to Accenture. Their industry expertise, approach, and strategic thinking make them a valuable partner in our industry.”
BRYAN CARRUTHERS
CEO of ANSER ADVISORY
Mergers & Acquisitions
Since 1990, EFCG has advised on over 200 completed M&A transactions in the AEC industry, equivalent to roughly $9 billion in total M&A consideration, which is estimated to be more than any other financial advisor or investment banking firm in this industry. EFCG provides integrated advisory services to AEC firms and assists financial sponsors seeking to invest in the industry.
For more information about M&A please contact Jessica Barclay at jbarclay@efcg.com
Sell-side Advisory
Approximately half of our M&A assignments involve helping small, medium and large AEC firms find a buyer that will provide a strategic fit and attractive price. Successfully completing a transaction at an attractive price is largely dependent on being able to confidentially find an acquirer who can achieve significant synergies from the acquisition.
Our confidential process allows us to gain a deep understanding of your firm so that we can understand its strengths and weaknesses, which helps us to identify the right and most likely M&A partners. Additionally, in an industry in which a firm's primary assets are its people, confidentiality is extremely important. Our ability to maintain a competitive process while avoiding an auction (which generally leads to leaks), is a unique characteristic of our process. Our long-standing relationships with the CEOs and decision-makers of prospective M&A partners have allowed us to gain a better understanding of each potential buyer's people, culture, internal politics, ownership structure, and financial position, as well as maintain confidentiality. Our ability to "know the buyer" is one of the most important factors contributing to the success of an M&A process.
This level of knowledge and credibility in the industry can save time, energy, and money; mitigates much of the downside risk; protects confidentiality; and provides leverage and efficiency in completing a transaction.
Buy-side Advisory
Approximately 1/3 of our M&A assignments involve assisting clients with buy-side searches, which typically entail identifying appropriate targets and helping bring a transaction to fruition. Clients may be searching for a small “tuck-in” acquisition from our database of roughly 3,000 AEC firms, or they may be looking to make a platform acquisition with a large AEC firm.
We aim to open doors for credible and determined buyers, while avoiding dead-ends and reducing cost, time and energy for our clients. Furthermore, our relationships with the CEOs and CFOs of many high quality AEC firms not only enables us to open doors, but also to assess the potential strategic and cultural fit of a deal.
Mergers
While a true “merger of equals” is hard to find, a merger between two firms where most of the financial consideration comes by way of a stock-for-stock exchange is an effective way of achieving the mutual benefits of a merger, without the need to overly financially leverage either firm. We are particularly adept at advising both sides, and helping each come to a mutually beneficial agreement. Mergers represent roughly 10% of our M&A assignments.
Divestitures
Given the importance of maximizing efficiency and focusing on core capabilities, we have helped several clients to divest various functions, business units, or geographical practices that are not a good fit for the parent company. Given our knowledge of the industry and understanding of the interests of many buyers, we can frequently effect such transactions efficiently and confidentially at a fair valuation. Divestitures represent approximately 10% of our M&A assignments.
Financial Sponsor & Private Equity Services
At EFCG, we understand the multifaceted challenges financial sponsors face when navigating transactions in the AEC industry. From limited access to benchmarking data and the absence of industry-standard transaction multiples to cultural intricacies and the need for differentiation, these obstacles require tailored solutions.
Our approach involves leveraging our extensive proprietary databases for detailed financial analysis and offering competitive transaction multiples to ensure fair valuations. Moreover, we capitalize on our established relationships with key decision-makers for strategic positioning and provide advisory services for seamless post-merger integration. With EFCG as your trusted partner, financial sponsors can confidently navigate the complexities of AEC transactions, achieving their objectives with precision and efficacy.
Market Performance Analysis
EFCG’s Market Performance Analysis provides a deep dive into the performance of an AEC industry end market (ex: Water/Wastewater, General Building, Transportation, Environmental). It displays a wide range of financial and operational metrics including revenue growth, profit margins, overhead spend, and employee turnover (download the below Overview and Template for the full list of metrics).
The analysis captures historical, current, and forward-looking KPIs that enable private equity firms and investors to:
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Assess whether a certain end market presents investment opportunities and/or aligns with their investment thesis
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Understand the landscape of specialized AEC firms and identify patterns in their organizational structures and business models
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Benchmark the performance of portfolio companies relative to key players in the space
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To purchase a customized Market Performance Analysis, please email Emily Shaw at eshaw@efcg.com.
