Q1 2026 saw North American M&A volume of 3,780 transactions and total deal value of $936 billion.
Within the Business Services sector, there were 365 transactions in Q1 2026, compared to 390 transactions in Q1 2025, representing a 6.41% decrease from last year.
Public Company Performance
Public company EV/EBITDA multiples have increased from previous levels with a median Business Services multiple of 12.3x in Q1 2026 compared to a median multiple of 10.7x in Q4 2025. The median EV/EBITDA multiple in Q1 2025 was 10.3x.
After Q1 2026, half of the business services sub-sectors (Education & Training Services, Facilities Services, and Professional Services) outperformed the S&P 500 over a five-year period.
