Large distributors in several sectors sought to augment top-line growth in softer end markets and to expand into new geographies in May through acquisitions, an M&A theme that has emerged during the first half of 2016. Consolidation ramped up last month in building materials & construction and HVAC & plumbing, with the largest distributors in each sector making acquisitions.
Building products distributor ABC Supply Co. Inc., Beloit, WI – No. 1 on MDM's list of the Top 10 Building Materials & Construction Distributors – acquired roofing products distributor T&C Supply, Flagstaff, AZ, giving ABC Supply its first location there.
And Ferguson Enterprises Inc. – No. 1 on MDM's list of the Top 10 HVACR & Plumbing Distributors – acquired Bruce-Rogers Co., a Fort Smith, AR-based plumbing and HVAC equipment supply house that serves contractors in western Arkansas, eastern Oklahoma and southern Missouri.
In other news from those sectors, Beacon Roofing Supply Inc., Herndon, VA – No. 4 on list of the Top 10 Building Materials & Construction Distributors – acquired Fox Brothers Co., a Lansing, MI-based distributor of roofing, siding, windows, doors and related products.
And MORSCO, a Fort Worth, TX-based distributor of commercial and residential plumbing, heating and cooling equipment, and pipe, valves and fittings, acquired plumbing wholesaler DeVore & Johnson, Athens, GA.
The other big M&A headline for last month: Air Liquide completed its acquisition of Airgas, making the global gases provider a key player in North American markets.
Here are other key deals that occurred in May 2016:
Lawson Products Acquires F.B. Feeney Hardware
Sonepar Subsidiary Codale Electric Acquires Grove Madsen Industries
Bunzl to Acquire 2 German Companies
Essendant Calls off Acquisition of Minority Contracts from Staples
S.P. Richards Agrees to Acquire Safety Zone
KLX Acquires Herndon Aerospace & Defense
Jergens Industrial Acquires B&G Supply
General Cable Agrees to Sell its North American Automotive Ignition Wire Business
Ritz Safety Acquires Public Works Supply
Air Products to Sell Performance Materials Division