Q3 2022 Education Industry Trends

Q3 2022 Key Highlights

The largest transaction in Q3 2022 and year-to-date was Roper Technologies’ announced acquisition of Frontline Education for $3.4 billion. Frontline’s cloud-based software provides a connected platform of administrative solutions for K-12 education.

Financial sponsors accounted for 32 percent of total volume and 46 percent of total value in the 1st 3 Quarters of 2022.

Q3 2022 Key Trends

Total transaction volume in Q3 2022 improved by eight percent over Q2 2022, from 103 to 111.

Total transaction value in Q3 2022 more than doubled over Q2 2022, from $2.3 billion to $4.9 billion.

The segment with the largest rise in volume in Q3 2022 over Q2 2022 was Higher-Ed Media and Tech with a 75 percent increase, from 12 to 21 transactions.

Multiples & Value Trends

The median revenue multiple from 2021 through the 1st 3 Quarters of 2022 fell 54 percent, from 3.5x to 1.6x.

Disclosed median enterprise value multiples from 2021 through the 1st 3 Quarters of 2022 were 2.6x revenue and 9.6x EBITDA.

Top Ten Deals Through Q3 2022

The top ten deals by value have seen two new additions since our half year report: the previously mentioned Frontline Education acquisition; and Advanced Personnel Management’s announced acquisition of Equus Workforce Solutions, a provider of workforce development services, for $ 154 million.

Of note, six of the top ten deals year-to-date were backed by private equity firms. These six deals, with an aggregate value of $4 billion, represented almost one-third of transaction value in the 1st 3 Quarters of 2022.