IoT M&A Is on the Rise, but Will It Last?

The latest market report from technology M&A advisory firm, HampletonPartners, reveals soaring deal values in the Internet of Things (IoT) sector bolstered by strong interest from telecoms investors fighting to gain a foothold in the rapidly growing market.

The IoT M&A report, which covers mergers and acquisitions in the period between July 2014 and December 2016, shows that deal values were driven by landmark deals such as Softbank's $32 billion acquisition of ARM and Verizon's $2.4 billion purchase of Fleetmatics, both of which topped 2016 deal tables. For the whole IoT sector, the trailing 30-month median revenue multiple rose to 4.0x, after hovering between 3.4x and 3.6x during the period.

ARM and Intel tied in first place for the highest number of IoT deals, announcing five acquisitions each. Just shy of the top position is Verizon, acquiring four entities. Other active acquirers included NXP, PTC and Google, with three acquisitions each.

Out of 231 transactions in the trailing 30-month period, activity in the monitoring segment accounted for the most - 34 per cent - of all completed deals. 2H 2016 also boosted valuations in the lagging semiconductor segment which made up 20 per cent of all activity in the same period.

ARM's sale to Softbank, along with a handful of other semiconductor-related billion dollar transactions accounted for three out of the top five IoT deals. The resurgence in billion dollar deals resulted in the trailing 30-month median revenue multiple for semiconductor-related transactions making a recovery to pre-2016 levels of 3.5x.

Miro Parizek, principal partner, Hampleton Partners: “Going forward IoT is likely to be an area of strong mergers and acquisition activity as powerful players vie for leadership in the connected world, seeking to dominate new and emerging technology markets by snapping up key enabling companies in the segment.”

The 8th bi-annual “Hampleton Partners M&A Research Report, 2H 2016” covers the period from July 2014 – December 2016, using data from 451 research. Hampleton’s research reports cover the following industries: Automotive Technology, Digital Marketing, e-Commerce, Enterprise Software, Internet of Things, IT & Business Services, SaaS and Cloud and Fintech.

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Hampleton Partners is at the forefront of international mergers and acquisitions and corporate finance advisory for companies with technology at their core. Hampleton’s experienced deal makers have built, bought and sold over 100 fast-growing tech businesses and provide hands-on expertise and unrivalled advice to tech entrepreneurs and companies which are looking to accelerate growth and maximise value.

With offices in London, Frankfurt and San Francisco, Hampleton offers a global perspective with sector expertise in: Automotive Technology, IoT, AI, Fintech, Hi-Tech Industrials & Industry 4.0, Cybersecurity, VR/AR, Healthtech, Digital Marketing, Enterprise Software, SaaS & Cloud and eCommerce.

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