Another Day, Another MSP Merger

Blink an eye and you may miss the latest managed services merger and acquisition news. This one involves Waypoint Solutions Group and Carolina Computer Network Solutions merging their businesses. And more deals are coming. Here’s an update.

According to a press release issued today, Waypoint merged Carolina Computer Network Solutions into its business in January 2010. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. And technology specifics weren’t really discussed in the release.

However, Waypoint seems to be building a presence up and down the U.S. East Coast. Headquartered in Charlotte, N.C., Waypoint now has offices in Miami (Fla.), Greenville (S.C.) and Freehold (N.J.).

Also, Waypoint CEO Dan Wilson is pretty high-profile in the managed services market, taking an active role in the MSPAlliance and also landing on our annual MSPmentor 250 list, which tracks the industry’s top executives, entrepreneurs and experts. And Wilson recently landed on the Charlotte Top 50 Entrepreneurs list.

More Deals Coming

M&A activity among MSPs is showing no signs of a slowdown. There are indications that Waypoint will announce another M&A deal within days or weeks.

Other companies are making similar moves. During the Feb. 10 MSPmentor Live webcast, outsource IT President and CEO Craig Guice said he expects his company to announce another acquisition within the next few weeks. outsource IT was ranked No. 47 in our 2010 MSPmentor 100 report.

Also of note: mindSHIFT CEO Paul Chisholm in the following FastChat video hints his company will make another acquisition in the next few months. mindSHIFT landed atop the MSPmentor 100 report.

Still, Chisholm in the video notes that not all M&A deals are worth pursuing; he points out that many would-be sellers don’t have assets that are worth acquiring.

Although valuations seem to vary from region to region, anecdotal evidence suggests MSPs are fetching 2X recurring revenues, and 1X for standard (project) revenues. Still, valuation formulas can certainly vary. Some valuations involve EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization).

A cottage industry of sorts has popped up around the MSP M&A activity. Multiple consulting firms and industry pundits are now advising MSPs on potential mergers and acquisitions.