February M&A Roundup: Deals Moderate but Momentum Remains Strong

February M&A Roundup: Deals Moderate but Momentum Remains Strong

While distribution M&A didn’t quite keep up the pace of the previous few months, all indications are that activity will continue to be brisk in 2021.
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The brisk M&A activity of the last few months slowed in February, yet the month still registered nearly 20 deals with momentum expected to continue throughout 2021.

Highlights from last month include WESCO International Inc. (NYSE: WCC), Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, divesting a pair of Canadian business units as part of its compliance with Canadian law related to the company’s 2020 acquisition of Anixter International Inc.

WESCO sold its legacy WESCO utility business in Canada to Rexel Canada, and it sold its legacy WESCO datacom business in Canada to Guillevin International, a Canadian distributor of industrial products. Although the financial terms of the deals weren’t disclosed, WESCO said proceeds from the sales would be used to repay debt.

SRS Distribution and one of its subsidiaries, Heritage Landscape Supply, each made two acquisitions during the month.

February Deals

There were many more notable transactions, of course, and in case you missed anything, here are all the M&A announcements — primarily involving distributors but also manufacturers that sell through the channel — MDM covered during the previous month (click the hyperlinked headline for more details):

  • SRS Distribution Acquires Louis T. Ollesheimer & Son — Building materials distributor SRS Distribution Inc., McKinney, Texas, acquired Louis T. Ollesheimer & Son Inc., a distributor of commercial and residential roofing and other related products.
  • SiteOne Landscape Supply Acquires Texas Distributor — SiteOne Landscape Supply Inc. (NYSE: SITE), Roswell, Georgia, acquired Lucky Landscape Supply LLC, Katy, Texas.
  • Krayden Acquires Northern Composites — Krayden Inc., a Denver, Colorado-based distributor of specialty chemicals to the aerospace, electronics, transportation and industrial sectors, has acquired Northern Composites, Hampton, New Hampshire.
  • KKR to Acquire Flow Control Group from Bertram Capital — KKR, a New York-based global investment firm, on Wednesday agreed to acquire Flow Control Group, a Charlotte, North Carolina-based distributor of flow control and industrial automation products, from Bertram Capital.
  • Regal Beloit to Pay $3.7 Billion for Rexnord’s Process & Motion Control Business — Regal Beloit Corp., Beloit, Wisconsin, and Rexnord Corp., Milwaukee, Wisconsin, announced a $3.7 billion deal in which Rexnord will separate its Process & Motion Control segment via a tax-free spin-off to its shareholders and then immediately combine it with Regal in a Reverse Morris Trust transaction.
  • Ingersoll Rand to Sell Interest in HPS Segment to PE Firm — Ingersoll Rand Inc., Davidson, North Carolina, has agreed to sell a majority interest in its High Pressure Solutions (HPS) Segment to the private equity firm American Industrial Partners (AIP) for $300 million.
  • Heritage Landscape Supply Acquires Watson Supply — Landscape distributor Heritage Landscape Supply Group Inc., a McKinney, Texas-based subsidiary of SRS Distribution, has acquired Watson Supply, a Harrisburg, Pennsylvania-based, family-owned distributor of hardscapes, lighting, irrigation and other landscape products.
  • WESCO Divests Canadian Datacom Business — WESCO International Inc., Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, has sold its legacy WESCO Datacom business in Canada to Guillevin International, a Canadian distributor of industrial products.
  • Beacon Completes Divestment of Interior Business Division — Beacon Roofing Supply Inc., Herndon, Virginia, has completed the previously announced $850 million sale of its interior products and insulation businesses to Foundation Building Materials, now majority-owned by affiliates of the private equity firm American Securities LLC.
  • Würth Industry North America Acquires Atlantic Fasteners — Würth Industry North America (WINA), Indianapolis, Indiana, has acquired Atlantic Fasteners Inc., Agawam, Massachusetts, a 36-year-old structural bolt manufacturer and fastener distributor.
  • SRS Distribution Acquires J.B. Wholesale — Building materials distributor SRS Distribution Inc., McKinney, Texas, has acquired J.B. Wholesale Roofing and Building Supplies Inc., Chatsworth, California.
  • Heritage Landscape Supply Acquires Atlanta Landscape Materials — Landscape distributor Heritage Landscape Supply Group Inc., a McKinney, Texas-based subsidiary of SRS Distribution, acquired Atlanta Landscape Materials, Atlanta, Georgia.
  • Motion & Control Enterprises Acquires Swanson Flo Control — Industrial distributor Motion & Control Enterprises, a Zelienople, Pennsylvania-based portfolio company of the private equity firm Frontenac Co., has acquired Swanson Flo Control, Plymouth, Minnesota.
  • WESCO Sells Canadian Utility Business to Rexel — WESCO International Inc. (NYSE: WCC), Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, sold its legacy WESCO utility business in Canada to Rexel Canada, a wholly owned subsidiary of France’s Rexel Group.
  • US LBM Acquires Villaume Industries — Specialty building materials distributor US LBM Holdings LLC, Buffalo Grove, Illinois, acquired Villaume Industries, an Eagan, Minnesota-based manufacturer of wood trusses for new residential and commercial construction and of custom wood crating, boxes and pallets in Minnesota.
  • Eaton to Acquire Cobham Mission Systems — Power management company Eaton, Dublin, Ireland, on Monday announced it has agreed to acquire UK-based manufacturer Cobham Mission Systems (CMS) for $2.8 billion.
  • Ingersoll Rand Completes Acquisition of Tuthill Vacuum and Blower Systems — Ingersoll Rand Inc., Davidson, North Carolina, completed the acquisition of Tuthill Vacuum and Blower Systems, Springfield, Missouri, for $184 million.
  • Ferguson Completes Disposal of Wolseley UK — Ferguson PLC has completed the disposal of Wolseley UK, its plumbing and heating distribution business. The company announced the £308 million (US$417.5 million) sale of the business to the private equity firm Clayton, Dubilier and Rice in early January.

Did we miss anything? Please send M&A announcements to editor@mdm.com. We also welcome suggestions for “Behind the Deal,” our occasional series that takes a deep dive into market-shifting moves in wholesale distribution.

Miss Our Virtual M&A Summit?

If you weren’t able to attend MDM’s Virtual M&A Summit last week, you can still watch the event on-demand. Click here to register. You’ll have access to nearly six hours of content through April.

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