Buy, sell and grow businesses
Daily deal reports, plain guides to buying and selling businesses, roll-ups, private equity and investing, and a glossary, written by Moran Pober and the Acquisitions.com advisors. New every day.
Deal reports
All deal reports →Who bought what, for how much, from the press release or filing — in the businesses buyers actually buy, plus the headline deal of the day.
Southern Home Services acquires Vanderford Air
Southern Home Services bought Vanderford Air and Plumbing in League City, Texas. Closed 2 November 2026; price not disclosed. What it means for buyers.
Pye-Barker acquires St. John's Fire Equipment
Pye-Barker Fire & Safety acquires St. John's Fire Equipment of St. Augustine, Florida. What was bought, what was disclosed, and what it means for small buyers.
Five9 acquires Level AI
Five9 agreed to buy Level AI for about $325 million in cash. What was bought, how the deal is built, and what it means for small B2B service buyers.
Champions Group acquires Bardi
Champions Group acquires Bardi, a 37-year-old Atlanta HVAC, plumbing and electrical firm. Price not disclosed. What was bought and what it means for buyers.
Century Fire acquires A&A Fire Protection
Century Fire Protection, a FirstService company, bought A&A Fire Protection of Greenville, SC. Terms not disclosed. What it means for fire buyers.
Affle acquires Perion
Affle agreed to buy Perion for $11.70 a share in cash, about $420 million in equity value. The terms, the go-shop, and what it means for small buyers.
"Elevate Service Group to acquire Red Lake
Elevate Service Group signed an LOI to buy Red Lake Plumbing & Heating for $1.3 million in cash, shares and a seller note. Terms and what they mean.
"DoorDash to acquire Instacart
DoorDash agreed to buy Instacart for $65.00 a share, about $17 billion, in cash and stock. How the deal is built and what it means for buyers.
Sector guides
Buying or selling in one trade: what buyers pay, who is buying, how to sell, how to buy.
Guides
Who Is Buying Restoration Businesses? PE Platforms and Strategics
Who is buying restoration businesses in 2026: the PE-backed platforms, public buyers and franchisors buying water, fire and mold firms, with a source for each.
How to Sell a Restoration Business: Steps, Documents, Timeline, Fees
How to sell a restoration business: clean up the books, show where jobs come from, find the right buyer, run the sale and close without surprises.
How to Buy a Restoration Business: Deals, Checks, SBA, Red Flags
How to buy a restoration business: find deals, check insurance receivables and referral sources, IICRC certifications, SBA loans and red flags.
AI Business Valuation: How AI Changes What a Business Is Worth
AI business valuation in plain words: what AI valuation tools can and cannot do, how AI cost savings raise earnings, and what buyers check before paying.
Business Valuation Methods Explained: Market, Income and Asset
The three business valuation methods (market, income, asset) in plain words: how each works, which fits your business, and a worked example.
Who Is Buying MSP Businesses in 2026? PE Platforms and Strategics
Who is buying MSP businesses: PE-backed platforms like Thrive, Integris, Ntiva and New Charter, PE firms buying whole platforms, and individual buyers.
Types of Business Buyers: 8 Kinds, What Each Wants and Pays For
The main types of business buyers: individuals, search funds, independent sponsors, private equity, strategics, roll-ups, family offices and insiders.
How to Sell an MSP Business: Steps, Documents, Timeline and Fees
How to sell an MSP business: firm up recurring revenue and contracts, get the documents ready, find the right buyer, plan the timeline and know the fees.
How to Buy an MSP Business: Deals, Checks, SBA Financing, Red Flags
How to buy an MSP business: where deals come from, what to check in contracts, staff and security, how SBA financing works, and the red flags to walk from.
Do I Need a Business Broker to Sell? When Yes, When No, the Cost
Do I need a business broker? No law says you must use one. Here is when selling alone works, when a broker or advisor pays for itself, and how to choose.
Who Is Buying Low Voltage Businesses in 2026? PE and Strategics
Who is buying low voltage businesses: Convergint, Sciens, IES Holdings, Hexatronic, Hudson Glade, Westnet, 26North and what each one wants to buy.
How to Sell a Low Voltage Business: Steps, Documents, Timeline, Fees
How to sell a low voltage business: split service from project revenue, document customers, licences and backlog, value on SDE or EBITDA, then close.
How to Keep a Business Sale Confidential: NDAs, Teasers, Staff
Confidentiality during a business sale: who to tell and when, blind teasers, NDAs, sharing documents in stages, telling staff, and what to do after a leak.
How to Buy a Low Voltage Business: Deals, Licences, SBA, Red Flags
How to buy a low voltage business: find cabling, AV and security firms, check licences, backlog and repeat work, finance with an SBA loan, spot red flags.
Competitive Sale Process Explained: Stages, Timeline and Tactics
A competitive sale process puts several buyers against each other on a fixed timetable. The stages, the process letter, bid rounds, exclusivity and the risks.
Who Is Buying Security and Access Control Businesses in 2026?
Who is buying security and access control businesses: Securitas, Allegion, Motorola, Everon, Pavion, Convergint, Pye-Barker and more, and what they want.
Deal Structures That Protect Sellers After Closing: Terms to Ask For
Deal structures that protect sellers: more cash at close, a secured seller note, tight earn-out rules, small escrows, capped indemnities and rollover rights.
Who Is Buying Electrical Contracting Businesses? Strategics and PE
Who buys electrical contractors: EMCOR, Quanta, MYR Group, Comfort Systems, IES, PE platforms and SBA buyers. The deals, prices and what each buyer wants.
How to Do an IPO: Readiness, the S-1, Roadshow, Costs and Timeline
How to do an IPO, for founders and roll-up operators: listing standards, audited financials, the S-1 and SEC review, roadshow, lock-ups, costs and timeline.
How to Do a SPAC: Sponsors, De-SPAC Mergers, Costs and the 2024 Rules
How to do a SPAC, explained: sponsoring one, merging into one (de-SPAC), founder shares, warrants, trust, redemptions, costs, timeline and the 2024 SEC rules.
Who Is Buying Plumbing Businesses in 2026? PE Platforms and Strategics
Who is buying plumbing businesses: Apex, Wrench, Sila, Redwood, Heartland, Southern Home Services, Any Hour, ARS and Roto-Rooter, who owns them, what they buy.
Who Is Buying Pest Control Businesses in 2026: Strategics and PE
Who is buying pest control businesses in 2026: Rollins, Rentokil Terminix and Anticimex, PE platforms like Certus, Aptive and PestCo, and SBA buyers.
Who Is Buying Landscaping Businesses? PE Platforms and Public Buyers
Who is buying landscaping businesses in 2026: BrightView, Yellowstone, Monarch, Cultivar (Sperber), Juniper, Ruppert and Landscape Workshop, each with a source.
Who Is Buying HVAC Businesses in 2026: PE Platforms and Strategics
Who is buying HVAC businesses in 2026: the private equity platforms (Apex, Sila, Redwood, Wrench), public buyers like Comfort Systems and EMCOR, and SBA buyers.
Who Is Buying Fire and Life Safety Businesses in 2026? Active Buyers
Who is buying fire and life safety businesses: APi Group, Pye-Barker, Marmic, Summit, Sciens, Encore, PSI and AI Fire, who owns them and what they buy.
Landscaping Business Valuation Multiples in 2026: What It's Worth
Landscaping business valuation multiples from our 2026 listing data (median 3.0x SDE asked) and IBBA's Q4 2025 closed deals by size, with a worked example.
How to Start a Private Equity Firm: Paths, Legal Set-Up and Fund I
How to start a private equity firm: independent sponsor, search fund or committed fund; GP/LP structure, SEC adviser rules, raising fund I, fees and carry.
How to Invest in Private Equity: 6 Routes, Fees, Rules and Risks
How to invest in private equity: PE funds, feeders, interval funds, listed PE firms, SPVs, search funds and roll-ups, with minimums, fees, lock-ups and rules.
How to Invest in a Roll-Up: Access, Structures, Checks and Risks
How investors get access to a roll-up (holdco equity, SPVs, Reg D offerings), what to check first, typical structures and the main risks. Education, not advice.
How to Become an Acquisition Sponsor (Independent Sponsor Guide)
What an acquisition sponsor (independent sponsor) does, how they earn fees and carry, how they differ from search funds and PE, and how to find a first deal.
How to Sell an HVAC Business in 2026: Steps, Timeline, Fees, Price
How to sell an HVAC business step by step: fix owner dependence and the licence, prove the numbers, value it, find the buyer, sign the LOI and close.
How to Sell a Plumbing Business: Steps, Documents, Timeline and Fees
How to sell a plumbing business step by step: fix the books and the licence, value it on earnings, find buyers quietly, sign the LOI, pass diligence and close.
How to Sell a Pest Control Business: Steps, Buyers, Price and Fees
How to sell a pest control business step by step: prove recurring revenue, fix what lowers the price, gather the documents, pick the buyer, structure the deal.
How to Sell a Landscaping Business: Steps, Documents, Timeline, Fees
How to sell a landscaping business in 8 steps: prepare the contracts and crews, gather documents, set a price, find buyers, handle diligence, taxes and fees.
How to Sell a Fire and Life Safety Business: 8 Steps, Documents, Fees
How to sell a fire and life safety business: split inspection from install revenue, document contracts and licences, value on SDE or EBITDA, close.
How to Do an AI-Powered Roll-Up: Platform, Add-Ons, Financing
What a roll-up is, why fragmented industries work, how multiple arbitrage pays, how to finance the first deals, and where AI fits before and after closing.
How to Buy an HVAC Business: Where Deals Come From, Checks, SBA
How to buy an HVAC business in 8 steps: where deals come from, the maintenance base, licences and qualifiers, fleet, seasonality, SBA 7(a) rules and red flags.
How to Buy a Plumbing Business: 8 Steps, Licences and SBA Financing
How to buy a plumbing business step by step: where deals come from, the licence rule for non-plumbers, what to check in the books and trucks, SBA 7(a) basics.
How to Buy a Pest Control Business: Deals, Checks, SBA Loan, Day One
How to buy a pest control business: find deals, check service agreements, routes, licences and chemicals, finance it with an SBA loan, run the first 90 days.
How to Buy a Landscaping Business: Deals, Checks, Crews and SBA Loans
How to buy a landscaping business in 8 steps: find deals, check contracts, equipment, H-2B crews and seasons, use an SBA 7(a) loan and spot red flags.
How to Buy a Fire and Life Safety Business: Licences, SBA, Red Flags
How to buy a fire and life safety business: where deals come from, state licences, NFPA inspection revenue, what to check, SBA financing and red flags.
How to Become a Business Broker: Licences, Fees and Your First Year
How to become a business broker in the US: what brokers do, which states require a licence or registration, the IBBA CBI, how fees work, first-year maths.
How to Become a Business Advisor in M&A: Skills, Credentials and Pay
How to become a business advisor who helps people buy and sell companies: skills, the CM&AA, CBI and CEPA credentials, retainer plus success fee, deal flow, AI.
When to Accept an Earn-Out as a Seller (and When to Say No)
A seller's guide to when to accept an earn-out: the cases where it makes sense, the ones where it does not, the eight terms that matter, and a worked example.
The 18-Month Business Sale Preparation Timeline, Month by Month
A business sale preparation timeline for owners selling in 18 months: clean books, QoE, less owner dependency, contracts, advisor, CIM, LOI, diligence, close.
Strategic Buyer vs Financial Buyer: Who Should You Sell To?
Strategic buyer vs financial buyer, side by side: price, speed, deal structure, rollover equity, your role after, confidentiality risk and certainty of close.
11 Mistakes When Selling a Business That Cost Owners Money
The mistakes when selling a business that cut the price or kill the deal: pricing on hope, messy books, owner dependency, no tax plan. Each with a fix.
M&A Advisor vs Investment Banker vs Business Broker: Who to Hire
M&A advisor vs investment banker vs business broker: deal sizes, who they work for, licences and FINRA registration, how each is paid, and when to pick which.
HVAC Business Valuation Multiples in 2026: What Your Company Is Worth
HVAC business valuation multiples by size, from IBBA's Q4 2025 Market Pulse and 2,914 live listings. What moves the price up or down, with a worked example.
How to Sell a Business in 2026: 9 Steps From Clean Books to Closing
How to sell a business step by step: pick the timing, clean the books, value it on SDE or EBITDA, write the CIM, find buyers quietly, sign the LOI and close.
How to Increase EBITDA Before Selling: 5 Moves That Raise the Price
How to increase EBITDA before selling: pricing, cost cuts buyers believe, recurring revenue, documented add-backs and AI, with a before-and-after price example.
How to Buy a Business in 2026: The 9 Steps, Costs and Financing
How to buy a business step by step: set a buy box, find deals, read the numbers, make an offer, get an SBA loan and seller note, do diligence and close.
How Roll-Ups Affect Your Exit: Price, Rollover and Your Role After
Getting calls from PE platforms? How roll-ups affect your exit: why platforms pay more for add-ons, rollover equity, earn-outs and what changes after close.
Glossary
All terms →One term, one page: definition, formula, worked example.
What is TTM (trailing twelve months)? Definition, formula and example
TTM means trailing twelve months: a business's results for the last 12 months in a row. The formula, a worked example, and how buyers use TTM in a deal.
What is an equity injection? Definition, formula and example
An equity injection is the money a buyer puts into an SBA-financed deal. The 10% rule, where the money can come from, and a worked example.
What is goodwill? Definition, formula and example
Goodwill is the part of a business price paid above the fair value of its assets. The formula, a worked example, and how it is taxed in a deal.
What is debt-free cash-free? Definition, formula and example
Debt-free cash-free means the seller keeps the cash and pays off the debt at closing. The formula, a worked example, and the mistakes that cut proceeds.
What is purchase price allocation? Definition, formula and example
Purchase price allocation splits the price of a business across its assets, from cash to goodwill. The IRS asset classes, the formula, and an example.
What is a stock sale? Definition, formula and example
A stock sale is when a buyer purchases the owner's shares, so the whole company changes hands. The formula, an illustrative example and common mistakes.
What is customer concentration? Definition, formula and example
Customer concentration is how much of a business's revenue comes from its biggest customers. The formula, a worked example, and how it moves a sale price.
What is enterprise value? Definition, formula and example
Enterprise value is what a whole business is worth before debt and cash. The formula, a worked example of a sale, and how it changes what the seller takes home.
All 28 glossary terms
What is rollover equity? Definition, formula and example
Rollover equity is the part of the sale price a seller reinvests in the business under its new owner. The formula, an illustrative $10M example, the pitfalls.
What is multiple arbitrage? Definition, formula and example
Multiple arbitrage is buying businesses at a low multiple of earnings and selling the combined company at a higher one. The formula, an example, and the catch.
What is an SBA 7(a) loan? Definition, terms and example
An SBA 7(a) loan is a bank loan partly guaranteed by the U.S. government, used by many people to buy a small business. Terms, buyer's cash and an example.
What is an independent sponsor? Definition and example
An independent sponsor finds a business, raises the money deal by deal, and earns a closing fee, a management fee and a share of the profit. With an example.
What is a search fund? Definition and example
A search fund pays one person to look for a business for two years, then the same investors fund the purchase. The two stages, with an illustrative example.
What is a roll-up? Definition, formula and example
A roll-up is buying several small businesses in one industry and combining them into one larger company. The formula, an illustrative example, and the risks.
What is a platform acquisition vs add-on? Definition and example
A platform acquisition is the first, larger business in a roll-up; add-ons are the smaller ones bolted on. Why the multiples differ, with an example.
What is an asset sale vs stock sale? Definition and example
Asset sale vs stock sale explained: what transfers, who keeps the liabilities, the tax effect for each side, and an illustrative purchase price allocation.
What is a working capital peg? Definition, formula and example
A working capital peg is the normal level of receivables, inventory and payables a seller must deliver at closing. Formula, 12-month example and true-up.
What is a quality of earnings (QoE) report? Definition and example
A quality of earnings (QoE) report checks whether a business's reported profit is real and repeatable. What it covers, who writes it, and an example.
What is a CIM? Confidential information memorandum explained
A confidential information memorandum (CIM) is the broker's sales document for a business. What it contains, what to check it against, and how to read it.
What is a buy box? Definition and example
A buy box is a one-page list of what you will and will not buy: industry, location, price, minimum earnings, owner role and deal-breakers. Here is an example.
What is SDE? Definition, formula and example
Seller's discretionary earnings (SDE) is the total cash a small business gives one owner-operator. The formula, a worked example, and the mistakes to avoid.
What is EBITDA? Definition, formula and example
EBITDA is earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization. The formula, a worked example, how it differs from SDE, and where it sets the price.
What is DSCR? Definition, formula and example
The debt service coverage ratio (DSCR) shows whether a business earns enough to pay its loan. The formula, what SBA lenders look for, and a worked example.
What is an earn-out? Definition, formula and example
An earn-out is extra purchase price paid later, only if the business hits agreed targets. The payout rule, a worked three-year example and the common disputes.
What is adjusted EBITDA? Definition, formula and example
Adjusted EBITDA is EBITDA plus add-backs for one-time and owner costs, minus normalisations such as a below-market salary. Formula, example, mistakes.
What is a seller note? Definition, formula and example
A seller note (seller financing) is part of the price the seller lends to the buyer. How the payment is worked out, a worked example, and the SBA standby rule.
What is a letter of intent (LOI)? Definition and example
A letter of intent (LOI) is the short, mostly non-binding offer a buyer signs before due diligence. What it states, which parts bind, and an example.
What are add-backs? Definition, formula and example
Add-backs are costs added to profit because a new owner will not pay them. Which add-backs buyers and lenders accept, which they dispute, and a worked example.
From the videos
Moran’s talks, written up as articles, with the video on top.
What Is an AI-Powered Roll-Up? Moran Pober Explains It in Plain Words
Moran Pober explains what an AI-powered roll-up is, why the timing is right, which sectors fit, how deal flow and capital work, and why margins are the game.
What Makes a Business Worth More to Buyers: 8 Things AI Can Fix
Buyers pay more for a business that runs without the owner. Moran Pober lists the 8 things they pay a premium for and how AI fixes each one in about 90 days.
How to Structure an Acquisition Deal: 5 Simple Structures
How to structure an acquisition deal: cash plus a loan, seller financing with interest, the seller keeping a slice, earn-outs and equity investors.
How to Start a Home Services Roll-Up: Moran Pober's 5 Steps
Moran Pober's guide to a home services roll-up: why fragmented trades suit it, which businesses to buy or avoid, seller financing, and AI across the group.
How to Buy a Business With Equity Investors: Moran Pober's 11 Lessons
How to buy a business with equity investors: what equity is, where it comes from, how to split the deal, what to agree in advance, and who may invest.
How to Use an SBA Loan to Buy a Business: The 2025 Rule Changes
Moran Pober explains the SBA 7(a) rule changes of June 2025 in plain words: 100% buyouts, real cash down, seller notes, licences, investors and what got easier.
How Acquisition Advisors Make Money: Retainers, Fees and Referrals
How acquisition advisors make money on the buy side: the up-front retainer, the fee at closing, and referral income from banks, brokers and lawyers.
Questions to Ask Before Buying a Business: 12 Beginner Answers
Moran Pober answers the 12 questions to ask before buying a business: sector, finding sellers, the capital stack, diligence, negotiating and what comes after.