To close out 2024, we probed our database to determine the top industries of interest for the 1,411 platform acquisitions in US & Canada this year.
Manufacturing, Software, Technology and Healthcare remain at the forefront of private equity acquisition interests.
Notably, compared to 2023, private equity firms have shown a greater interest in Research & Development and AI company acquisitions. A significant number of the R&D investments were made in Biopharma and Clinical Stage companies. Private Equity investments in AI companies were diverse across many industries and applications, highlighting the broad use cases and adoption of AI. These top industries underline how private equity is both responding to and shaping the future of market trends.
|
Industry |
% of Platform Acquisitions |
| 1. Manufacturing |
12.3% |
| 2. Software |
11.4% |
| 3. Technology |
7.6% |
| 4. Healthcare |
6.7% |
| 5. Food/Beverage |
4.7% |
| 6. Finance/Investment |
4.5% |
| 7. Consulting |
3.4% |
| 8. Construction/Engineering |
2.9% |
| 9. Distributor |
2.5% |
| 10. Research & Development |
2.3% |
| 11. Retail/E-Commerce |
2.3% |
| 12. Energy |
2.1% |
| 13. Marketing/Advertising/PR |
2.0% |
| 14. Artificial Intelligence |
1.8% |
| 15. Transportation/Automotive |
1.6% |