Mega Deals Mask Stagnant Mid-Sized M&A Market That Pays More

Big deals are back. M&A is not.

Large acquisitions, led by Verizon Communications Inc.’s $130 billion purchase of its wireless business from Vodafone Group Plc, pushed mergers up 42 percent in the third quarter to $671 billion, data compiled by Bloomberg show. That belies stagnation in takeovers below $5 billion -- the heart of dealmaking -- where volumes fell about 2 percent. Those smaller deals matter to bankers who count on them for close to 90 percent of advisory fees, according to Freeman & Co.