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A recently released census capturing merger-and-acquisition activity showed lower levels of restaurant industry M&A activity in 2012. Only 96 deals were announced in 2012, compared to the 100 that were reported in 2011. “In 2012 there were eight announced chain initial public offering announcements and six public chains going private. At the same time, chain franchisees announced acquisitions of franchised units in 36 percent of all non-public transactions,” he said. “Equity fund purchases again contributed significantly to this year’s activity.” There were several large strategic acquisitions with made the valuations higher in 2012, including Darden Restaurant’s $585 million purchase of Yard House USA and Caribou Coffee’s $340 million private agreement with Germany-based holding company, Ludwigshafen. The census found that in 2012, equity funds continued to buy restaurant chain brands, accounting for 27% of all announced transactions. Franchise transactions represented 32% of all announced transactions in 2012, a decline from the 46% of all transactions tracked in 2011. “It is now more common for franchisee organizations to consider synergistic acquisitions as a key component to their growth strategy,” Epstein noted. The census also showed that operators looking for new growth opportunities contributed 24% of this year’s activity... Continued
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restaurants, business, business opportunities, merger, acquisitions, growth, ipo,
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