Texas M&A staged a comeback year in 2021 with some astonishing deal numbers. But behind those numbers lies some interesting changes in the business sectors that both gained and changed. Some are obvious, like healthcare and infrastructure; but some are not so obvious, like food. The CDT Roundup looks at some of those numbers and, in particular, one food deal that typifies several ways in which the food sector is changing, along with last week’s dealmaking and the firms involved.
M&A 2021: A Year Beyond ‘Even the Wildest Expectations’
Texas M&A boomed in Texas in 2021 — in value, in deal count and in ways that bode well for 2022. According to exclusive data from The Texas Lawbook’s Corporate Deal Tracker, each month of 2021 outperformed 2020 year-over-year. There were more deals at basically every level — for $1 million or $1 billion or beyond. Whether in energy or healthcare, construction or infrastructure, technology or transportation, it was a year that rebounded from the pandemic beyond the most optimistic expectations. The Lawbook has the numbers, the tables and the views of deal lawyers across the state of what was, from virtually any perspective, a very remarkable year.
CDT Roundup: 11 Deals, 12 Firms, 101 Lawyers, $3.9B
M&A in North America reached a record $2.7 trillion in 2021, according to PitchBook last week. Meanwhile deals in Texas kept apace with nearly a dozen. The CDT Roundup has all of them, and the lawyers involved.
Earthstone Grabs Midland Basin Assets from Bighorn for $860M
The transaction comes on the heels of the company’s $600 million asset acquisition from Warburg Pincus-backed Chisholm Energy Holdings in December. Attorneys from Haynes and Boone and Simpson Thacher advised on the deal.
DBJ: Lawyers Fear Proposed SEC Regulations Could Trigger Noncompliance for Some PE Firms, Hedge Funds
Lawyers weighed in Wednesday on the new SEC proposal which would increase the frequency and amount of information some firms and hedge funds are required to disclose.
CDT Roundup: 13 Deals, 10 Firms, 99 Lawyers, $5.1B
Upstream M&A values for oil and gas were up last year by 25% over 2020, a hopeful sign that energy production transactions are getting back to pre-Covid levels. However, gains in deal volume were slight. At the moment, 2022 seems set for continued deal flow, particularly in the mid-size markets. But beyond? The CDT Roundup has more on those numbers and a look at the lawyers who provided last week’s deals.
Chesapeake Picks Up Chief for $2.65B
Three firms in Texas — Gibson Dunn, Shearman & Sterling and Akin Gump — advised on the deal, which was reported as in its final stages last week. Some analysts are curious how Chesapeake will hedge, given concerns about the outlook for natural prices in 2023.
Q&A with Jackson Walker Deal Partner Kyle Hooper
The Texas Lawbook caught up with Hooper about his decision with Brian Lidji to join forces with one of the largest firms in the state, memorable deals he and Lidji have handled and their clients’ concerns.