CHICAGO – Merger activity in the EMS industry has barely blinked in the wake of Covid-19, based on quarterly tracking of the number of transactions.

While mergers and acquisitions were lower year-over-year in the third quarter, Lincoln International says there is “significant opportunity” for additional M&A later this year. The firm counted five completed deals in the September period, down one from a year ago but up two sequentially.

Among the deals: East West Manufacturing acquired Universal Electronics; One Equity Partners bought Sparton’s Manufacturing and Design Services Unit; and Sensata Technologies acquired Preco Electronics.

The firm expects the EMS market revenue to reach $581.3 billion by 2024, up 5.6% CAGR over 2019. Communications (6.9%) and Medical (6.4%) are expected to outperform the other segments, while consumer will inch up only 0.9% over the forecast period. IoT, which barely existed in 2019, is expected to reach $3 billion in 2024, up 400% over the forecast period.

Communications ($236 billion) and Computers ($170 billion) will remain the largest segments in 2024.

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