of 2026 transactions involve an investment fund or a company it owns
36 of 47 transactionsSector perspectives · Chemicals · October 2026
Chemicals: funds are taking the lead. Owners have options.
Manufacturing, formulation, distribution: what 582 North American transactions, from January 2021 to October 21, 2026, reveal for the owner of a chemical company.
01
Funds are buying more. Industrial buyers pulled back.
more transactions by funds, while industrial buyers fell 45%
January 1 to October 21, 2026 vs 2025Canadian transactions involve a foreign buyer
22 of them with an American buyerTransactions by year, North America
143
107
105
112
68
47
202120222023202420252026*
Same period, January 1 to October 21
20252026
* 2026: January 1 to October 21. Base of 582 transactions, Tribal Capital analysis.
Fewer deals than in 2021, but funds keep buying
The market has slowed since the 2021 peak. Over the same period, funds are buying more than in 2025; industrial buyers are the ones who pulled back. If you only talk to your competitors, you are talking to the group of buyers that is buying the least right now.
Funds are building groups
APPLIED Adhesives completed 11 acquisitions. Arsenal Capital took part in 22 transactions, directly or through its companies. Overall, 71% of acquisitions strengthen a business that is already operating. Your company could become the next piece of a group, and a fund may offer you the chance to reinvest part of the price.
Your buyer may be American
22 of the 42 Canadian transactions involve an American buyer. A search limited to Quebec misses the buyers behind more than half of Canadian transactions.
02
What the buyers are worth.
These twelve listed groups buy specialized businesses. Their stock market value shows how far they can go for an acquisition. The EBITDA multiple is how much a buyer pays for each dollar of operating profit: at 11.6x, it pays $11.60 for $1 of EBITDA.
| Company | Enterprise value | Sales | EBITDA | Margin | Value / sales | EBITDA multiple |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Distribution | ||||||
| Brenntag | 13,553 | 17,003 | 1,178 | 6.9% | 0.8x | 11.5x |
| IMCD | 8,413 | 5,574 | 579 | 10.4% | 1.5x | 14.5x |
| Azelis | 5,343 | 4,621 | 454 | 9.8% | 1.2x | 11.8x |
| Specialty chemicals and formulations | ||||||
| Hawkins | 2,985 | 1,110 | 167 | 15.0% | 2.7x | 17.9x |
| Stepan | 2,029 | 2,430 | 210 | 8.6% | 0.8x | 9.7x |
| Eastman | 12,037 | 8,870 | 1,390 | 15.7% | 1.4x | 8.7x |
| Quaker Houghton | 3,487 | 1,980 | 287 | 14.5% | 1.8x | 12.2x |
| Ecolab | 89,560 | 16,840 | 4,140 | 24.6% | 5.3x | 21.6x |
| Adhesives, coatings and materials | ||||||
| H.B. Fuller | 4,815 | 3,550 | 610 | 17.2% | 1.4x | 7.9x |
| Arkema | 7,806 | 9,982 | 1,211 | 12.1% | 0.8x | 6.4x |
| PPG | 30,004 | 16,420 | 2,700 | 16.4% | 1.8x | 11.1x |
| Sika | 42,397 | 13,436 | 2,346 | 17.5% | 3.2x | 18.1x |
| Median of the 12 groups | 1.4x | 11.6x | ||||
In millions of US dollars. Closing prices of October 20, 2026. Last twelve months sales and EBITDA. Enterprise value: market capitalization, plus debt, minus cash.
Why a listed group can pay a good price
Example: a private company generates $2M of EBITDA. A group valued at 12x buys it at 7x, or $14M. In its own valuation, that EBITDA is worth about $24M. The $10M gap gives it room to move on price.
Key takeaway
A private company does not sell at Ecolab’s or Sika’s multiple. These multiples show how far a buyer can go. The negotiation happens in the gap between what the buyer is worth and what it pays you.
03
What acquirers pay.
Six acquisitions paid between 7.7x and 20.1x EBITDA. The gap depends mostly on what the business brings to the buyer.
| Company | Acquirer | Activity | Year | Value (US$M) | EBITDA multiple |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Univar | Apollo (fund) | Chemical distribution | 2023 | 8,100 | 7.7x |
| ND Industries | H.B. Fuller | Specialty adhesives | 2024 | 250 | <10x |
| Dow packaging adhesives | Arkema | Divisional sale | 2024 | 150 | ~10x |
| Emerald Kalama | LANXESS | Flavors and preservatives | 2021 | 1,075 | 11.9x |
| Niacet | Kerry | Specialty preservatives | 2021 | 1,015 | 15.4x |
| Ashland adhesives | Arkema | Divisional sale | 2021 | 1,650 | 20.1x |
EBITDA multiples before synergies.
What takes a business from 8x to 15x.
- Distribution that does more than deliver (Univar, 7.7x). Distribution sells for less than specialty manufacturing. Everything that sets you apart from a simple distributor raises the price. To document: your supplier mandates, your sales by application and your customer loyalty.
- Adhesives for demanding applications (about 10x to 20.1x). With ND Industries, H.B. Fuller adds adhesives that lock and seal fasteners in automotive and aerospace. The more specific your formulations and the more embedded they are with your customers, the closer you get to the top. To document: your formulations and how customers use them.
- A manufacturing process in a precise niche (Niacet, 15.4x). Niacet brings Kerry proprietary drying and granulation processes. Expertise that is hard to replicate commands a high price. To document: your processes, yield per batch and the capacity of your lines.
04
Close to home: five Quebec transactions, four paths.
| Year | Company | Activity | Acquirer or investor | Type |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | Québec-O-Chimie | Water treatment | Rochester Midland | US industrial |
| 2021 | Canlak | Wood coatings | SK Capital Partners | US fund |
| 2021 | Avmor | Cleaning products | Diversey | US industrial |
| 2024 | Groupe Dissan | Sanitation distribution | BDC Capital | Minority partner |
| 2026 | Groupe Somavrac | Chemical handling and distribution | Instar Asset Management | Canadian fund |
Our reading
Selling 100% to a competitor is only one option. A fund, a foreign buyer or a minority partner who leaves you in charge are others. Putting them in competition drives the price up.
Method: 582 transactions completed in North America from January 2021 to October 21, 2026 in chemical manufacturing, formulation and distribution. Tribal Capital analysis.
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