How active is Private Equity / PE-Backed Roll-Up in wholesale distribution acquisitions?

41 disclosed private equity / pe-backed roll-up acquisitions of wholesale distribution businesses analyzed (41 from 2018+). Run the ExitValue.ai calculator to see what this buyer pool would pay for your specific business.

Who are the most active private equity / pe-backed roll-up buyers of wholesale distribution businesses?

Top recent acquirers by deal count: Patient Square Capital (2 deals), Midwich Group plc (2 deals), Clayton, Dubilier & Rice, LLC (2 deals), CFW Partners, L.P (2 deals), Mill Road Capital Management LLC (2 deals), QXO, Inc. (1 deals).

BUYER POOL ANALYSIS

Selling a Wholesale Distribution to Private Equity / PE-Backed Roll-Up buyers

Private equity firms and PE-backed platform consolidators acquiring for roll-up, add-on, or platform plays. Pricing tends to lead the market for fee-viable scale, with multi-bidder competitive processes above the EBITDA floor.

Quick answers

How many disclosed transactions?: 41 deals total (41 from 2018+), filtered to Private Equity / PE-Backed Roll-Up acquirers of wholesale distribution businesses.
Most active buyers: Patient Square Capital (2) · Midwich Group plc (2) · Clayton, Dubilier & Rice, LLC (2) · CFW Partners, L.P (2) · Mill Road Capital Management LLC (2) · QXO, Inc. (1)
What would this buyer pool pay for my business?: Run the ExitValue.ai calculator to see your wholesale distribution priced against the 41 disclosed private equity / pe-backed roll-up transactions in this segment. The engine surfaces the specific multiples that apply to your size, margin, and growth profile.

Recent disclosed deals

Private Equity / PE-Backed Roll-Up acquisitions of wholesale distribution businesses with named target and named acquirer.

Year	Target	Acquirer
2026	Kodiak Building Partners Inc.	QXO, Inc.
2025	Air Lease Corporation	Sumitomo Corporation
2025	Kyocera Industrial Tools, Inc.	Truelink Capital Management, LLC
2025	Quipt Home Medical Corp.	Kingswood Capital Management / Forager Capital Management
2025	Patterson Companies	Patient Square Capital
2024	Agiliti Inc.	Thomas H. Lee Partners, L.P.

What this buyer pool prices for

Private equity acquirers price for scale and roll-up arbitrage. They pay up for businesses that fit a platform thesis - recurring revenue mix above 30%, technician/professional depth, clean financials, and a management layer that survives integration. A wholesale distribution that fits the platform thesis prices materially above what an individual buyer would pay because PE is buying a platform piece, not an owner-operated shop.

Methodology note

Deal flow shown reflects disclosed M&A transactions in the ExitValue.ai database, filtered to wholesale distribution businesses acquired by private equity / pe-backed roll-up buyers. Deal counts shown reflect deals with disclosed financials only - total transaction count for this buyer pool is typically 2-3x larger. The valuation engine reveals the specific multiples that apply to your business when you run the calculator above. Full methodology

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Engine-grounded estimate. Comparable private equity / pe-backed roll-up deals on the full results page.