The Seamless Brief 001 - Valuation: Where the M&A market stands heading into late 2026

If a sale or an acquisition is anywhere on your radar, here's the short read from the latest DealStats Value Index, which tracks what private businesses actually sell for.

The market is strong and holding. Valuations hit a multi-year high in early 2026, then eased back in the second quarter, but even after the pullback they're still higher than any point in the last five-plus years outside that peak. The recent cooling is coming off a high, not falling through the floor.

Consistent with our experience with clients in 2026, deal volume between private buyers and private sellers, where most small business transactions live, are trending up, not down. Profit margins on sold businesses are holding steady, so buyers are still seeing healthy, believable earnings. And pricing measured against revenue actually hit record levels this year. Add it up and it's a seller-friendly stretch with real buyer appetite still on the table.

For a rough sense of the numbers: the typical private business changes hands around 4x its annual earnings (EBITDA. That's the middle of the pack. Where any single business lands depends on its size, industry, and how clean the story is.

Bottom line: the window is open and demand is real. If a deal is on your horizon, it's a good backdrop, provided your financials are ready to hold up to a buyer's look.