What do they think of the Index?
- Professor Reiner Braun, Technical University of Munich (March 2020)
- Éric de Montgolfier, CEO of Invest Europe (Dec. 2019)
Data Publication
> Download the Index
Quarterly Edition, Q4 2020_____________________
> See the Index in 5 additional languages:
_____________________
> Detailed Data on Euro Zone Multiples
_____________________
> Access underlying EMAT Reports
- c.100 M&A deal Reports per Index
- See example of Deal Report
- Buy / Subscribe
Argos Index® mid-market
Evolution of Euro Zone Mid-Market Private Company Prices - Quarterly Index carried out by Epsilon Research
Historic record for the Argos Index® at 11.1x EBITDA on Q4 2020
Acquisition prices of unlisted European SMEs climbed to a record high 11.1x EBITDA amid a low overall transaction volume.
Paris (France) – 1 March 2021 – Argos Wityu, the independent European investment fund, and Epsilon Research, the online platform for the management of non-quoted M&A transactions, today published the Mid-market Argos Index® for the fourth quarter of 2020. This index, launched in 2006, tracks the valuations of eurozone private, mid-market companies in which a majority stake has been acquired during the last six months.
Acquisition prices of unlisted European SMEs reached a record high. This all-time high of 11.1x EBITDA was a result of:
• The outlook for a recovery in economic growth with the development of vaccines effective against Covid-19, despite a second wave of the epidemic and a recession that saw the eurozone’s GDP decline by 7.4% in 2020;
• Massive intervention on the part of central banks to keep interest rates low for the long-term;
• Changes in the composition of the index: 65% of the transactions referenced in the fourth quarter were in the non-cyclical healthcare and technology sectors (i.e. 15 percentage points more than in the previous quarter) that have been spared or even favored by the crisis and that present high multiples.
The multiples paid by investment funds exceeded 10x EBITDA for the first time.
• The multiples paid by investment funds increased significantly, by more than 20% to 11.2x EBITDA, the highest level the Argos Index® has reached since its inception in 2004; they are now higher than the multiples paid by strategic buyers (11.0x EBITDA).
• Three factors are driving this increase: i) competition from strategic buyers for companies not affected by the crisis is robust, ii) private equity investment continues to rise, and iii) the cost of acquisition debt is low (tied to central bank policy).
During the second half of the year, the percentage of transactions with multiples in excess of 15x:
• Increased briskly to 19% of transactions;
• Returned to the levels observed in the second half of 2019.
Listed companies were very active and made opportunistic acquisitions. They:
• Represented 75% of strategic buyers on the mid-market in the second half;
• Benefited from a favourable market environment and a rise in their valuations;
• Saw their acquisition multiples advance by 20% this quarter to 10.1x EBITDA, narrowing the gap with strategic buyers as a whole (11.0x EBITDA).
The sharp rise in the Argos Index® came amid low mid-market M&A activity in the eurozone, which:
• Declined by 15% in volume terms and 36% in value terms in 2020, against the background of a deep economic recession as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic;
• Declined by 13% q-o-q in the fourth quarter, but rose 47% in value terms, returning to its fourth quarter 2019 level.
> You can download the full study under "Data Publication" (left)
Argos Mid Market Index - Sample Analysis
| H2 2017 | H1 2018 | H2 2018 | H1 2019 | H2 2019 | H1 2020 | Q3 2020 | H2 2020 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sample Size | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| # deals retained for the index | 89 | 92 | 105 | 100 | 101 | 60 | 65 | 70 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Average Equity Value (€m) | 140.5 | 142.0 | 115.7 | 112.6 | 123.4 | 117.7 | 113.3 | 143.6 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Average N-1 sales (€m) | 113.3 | 130.0 | 112.0 | 124.4 | 112.0 | 89.7 | 105.4 | 100.1 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| N-1 EBITDA margin | 14% | 13% | 15% | 13% | 15% | 19% | 17% | 17% | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| N-1 EBIT margin | 12% | 8% | 8% | 9% | 12% | 10% | 13% | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Breakdown by size (equity value) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| [15-49] €m | 25% | 28% | 36% | 31% | 37% | 35% | 29% | 29% | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| [50-99] €m | 18% | 21% | 20% | 24% | 27% | 25% | 20% | 16% | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| [100-150] €m | 22% | 16% | 18% | 19% | 6% | 13% | 25% | 20% | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Breakdown by deal type | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Acquisition | 67% | 74% | 71% | 65% | 73% | 65% | 63% | 66% | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| LBO | 33% | 26% | 29% | 35% | 27% | 35% | 37% | 34% | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Breakdown by country | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| France | 28% | 32% | 34% | 49% | 46% | 48% | 40% | 33% | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Germany | 13% | 15% | 20% | 14% | 14% | 17% | 17% | 20% | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Italy | 19% | 14% | 15% | 13% | 10% | 8% | 17% | 9% | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Benelux | 11% | 13% | 15% | 10% | 14% | 8% | 9% | 13% | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Spain | 14% | 4% | 6% | 3% | 5% | 7% | 8% | 11% | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Other (euro zone) | 15% | 22% | 10% | 11% | 11% | 12% | 9% | 14% | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Breakdown by sector | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Energy and Raw Materials | 11% | 11% | 5% | 2% | 11% | 9% | 7% | 7% | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Building, Construction | 7% | 3% | 5% | 6% | 2% | 0% | 1% | 0% | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Industrial Equipment | 13% | 19% | 23% | 12% | 11% | 4% | 13% | 8% | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Consumer Products | 5% | 3% | 4% | 3% | 1% | 6% | 4% | 3% | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Agro-Food | 8% | 9% | 6% | 7% | 10% | 4% | 6% | 1% | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Healthcare-Pharmaceuticals | 6% | 4% | 8% | 12% | 8% | 12% | 17% | 27% | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Wholesale, Retail | 7% | 9% | 5% | 7% | 8% | 4% | 3% | 4% | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Transport | 3% | 11% | 7% | 7% | 6% | 6% | 7% | 3% | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| TMT | 14% | 21% | 23% | 22% | 29% | 39% | 34% | 38% | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Business and Consumer Services | 26% | 10% | 14% | 22% | 14% | 16% | 8% | 9% | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Argos Mid Market Index - List of Underlying Transactions
H1 2004 - H2 2004 - H1 2005 - H2 2005 - H1 2006 - H2 2006 - H1 2007 - H2 2007 - H1 2008 - H2 2008 - H1 2009 - H2 2009 - H1 2010 - H2 2010 - H1 2011 - H2 2011 - H1 2012 - H2 2012 - H1 2013 - H2 2013 - H1 2014 - H2 2014 - H1 2015 - H2 2015 - H1 2016 - H2 2016 - H1 2017 - H2 2017 - H1 2018 - H2 2018 - H1 2019 - H2 2019 - H1 2020 - Q3 2020 - H2 2020
| Date | Acquirer | Target | Country | Industries | Valuation multiples | See details |
|---|
Argos Mid-Market Index Breakdown
Access restricted to "Epsilon Eurozone Data" subscribers.
> If you are a subscriber, please login on the Epsilon Platform
> If not, please click here for additional information
NB: This part includes the transaction multiples (median, LTM):
I- Breakdown per main industry sectors
- Energy, Raw Materials, and Chemicals
- Building - Construction
- Industrial Equipment
- Consumer Products
- Agro-food
- Healthcare - Pharma
- Wholesale - Retail
- Transport
- TMT (Technology, Media, Telecommunications)
- Business and Consumer Services
II- Breakdown per main Euro Zone countries
- Germany
- France
- Italy
- Spain - Portugal
- Benelux
Euro Zone Mid Market M&A Trends
Access restricted to "Epsilon Eurozone Data" subscribers.
> If you are a subscriber, please login on the Epsilon Platform
> If not, please click here for additional information
NB: This part includes the following data:
- Euro zone M&A mid market activity (volume & value)
- Share of foreign buyers within industrial buyers
- Breakdown of foreign buyers (Europe -non Euro zone, North America, Asia, RoW)
- Share of listed buyers within industrial buyers
Euro Zone Mid Market LBO Trends
Access restricted to "Epsilon Eurozone Data" subscribers.
> If you are a subscriber, please login on the Epsilon Platform
> If not, please click here for additional information
NB: This part includes the following data:
- Euro zone LBO mid market activity (volume & value)
- Euro zone LBO exit mid market activity (volume & value)
- Share of SBOs within LBO exits
Argos Mid Market Index - Methodology
The Argos Mid-Market Index measures the evolution of euro zone private mid market company valuations.
Carried out by Epsilon Research for Argos Soditic and published every quarter, it reflects median EV/EBITDA multiples, on a six-month rolling basis, of mid market M&A transactions in the euro zone.
The preparation of the Argos Mid-Market Index is based on a rigorous methodology and in-depth scrutiny of M&A transactions making up the sample :
- Choice of the relevant multiple: the EV/EBITDA multiple is the most suitable for a European index as it is not impacted by the target’s financial structure nor by its policies regarding depreciation and provisioning (which vary in time and between countries). It is also the closest readily available proxy for operating cash flow.
- Sample of M&A transactions analysed, using the following criteria :
- acquisition of a majority stake,
- target based in a euro zone country,
- mid market : equity value in the €15-500m range (€15-150m up to H1 2013; €15-500m from H2 2013 onwards),
- certain activities excluded (financial services, real estate, high-tech),
- availability of relevant target financial data.
- Information sources are those used by Epsilon Research to prepare analysis reports on transactions available in its EMAT database:
- Professional partner databases such as: CorpfinDeals (transactions), CompanyQuery (company accounts),
- Publicly available information: company accounts, press releases, annual reports (buyers / sellers), press articles, etc.
- Comprehensive analysis of each transaction identified: research covering all available information; verifying, cross-checking, restating financial data; analysis of target activity and of the context of the deal; calculating and analysing acquisition multiples; rating the reliability of multiples.
The Index in perspective:
Following its launch in December 2006, the Argos Mid-Market Index has become a leading reference for private transactions, used by private equity funds, M&A advisors, investment banks, and accountants.
The strict methodology followed guarantees that the index is rigorous, relevant, stable and transparent. The goal is to offer market professionals and company managers a reference tool for understanding the evolution of acquisition prices in private company transactions.
|
The Index is only an indication of the evolution of private company prices. It is relevant in relative, not absolute, value. The Index was not designed as a business valuation tool and cannot be used directly to value a company. |
In partnership with
“The Argos Index® is an important benchmark for valuing unlisted European companies and is based on very reliable data", Éric de Montgolfier, CEO of Invest Europe (See his interview)
Index source of information:
EMAT - Epsilon Multiple Analysis Tool™
The Reference Source for Private Company Acquisition Multiples
