Plastics Industry M&A Activity Tracking
Global Plastics M&A recorded 25 deals in February, down from 31 last year and below the strong start recorded in January. Deals in the month were driven by active strategic buyers, which reported a notable increase from last month. Private equity add-on deals continued to report elevated levels of activity due, in part, to the high level of investment by private equity in the plastics industry over the last few years. New private equity platform activity, however, reverted to lower levels experienced in the 2nd half of 2022, after a strong start in January.
- Strategic buyers were highly acquisitive in the month, accounting for 12 transactions, or 48% of the total deal volume in the month, and up from nine transactions recorded in January
- The majority of the decline in transaction volume levels from last month can be attributed to lower private equity platform transactions, which decreased from 9 deals in January to 3 deals in February
- Injection molding transactions recorded 6 deals for the second consecutive month, which is slightly below the trailing 12-month average of 7 deals
- Specialty Plastic transactions which include foam, extrusion, distribution, and other sectors, recorded 12 deals in February, up from 11 deals last year
- Color & Compounding transactions are off to a strong start in 2023, matching last year’s transaction activity and 50% higher than the trailing 12-month average of 2 deals
Despite continued challenges with acquisition financing and macroeconomic uncertainty, the Global Plastics M&A market has shown resilience so far in 2023. Transaction volumes have rebounded from subpar fourth quarter activity levels and appear to be on track to continue at higher levels in the near term. If you are a plastics company considering a merger, acquisition, sale, or recapitalization in the short or long term, please consider leveraging PMCF’s transaction planning and execution expertise to best position your company in a transaction.
Sources: Capital IQ, PitchBook, Thomson Reuters, Company Reports, PMCF. Data as of February 28, 2023
Plastics M&A By Subsector
Total Plastics M&A By End Market
Plastics Transactions By Buyer Type
Notable M&A Activity
Public Entity Performance
Major News
- Commodity Resin Prices on the Rise at the Start of 2023 (Plastics News)
https://www.plasticsnews.com/resin-pricing/higher-resin-prices-start-2023 - Economic Data is Full of Drama. What Does that Mean for Plastics (Plastics News)
https://www.plasticsnews.com/news/economy-data-full-drama-what-does-mean-plastics - Efforts Underway to Expand PET Thermoforming Recycling (Plastics News)
https://www.plasticsnews.com/news/efforts-underway-expand-pet-thermoform-recycling - Economy Showing Strength in Early 2023 After Last Quarter’s GDP Gain Revised Modestly Lower (The Wall Street Journal)
https://www.wsj.com/articles/economy-showing-strength-in-early-2023-after-last-quarters-gdp-gain-revised-modestly-lower-5b068ade?mod=Searchresults_pos12&page=1 - Fed’s Barkin Supports Measured Pace of Interest-Rate Increases (The Wall Street Journal)
https://www.wsj.com/articles/feds-barkin-supports-measured-pace-of-interest-rate-increases-1ca6425b?mod=Searchresults_pos2&page=7
Download Plastics M&A Update – February 2023
Packaging M&A Update – June 2026
Global Packaging M&A held steady in June with 27 transactions, in line with May and three deals above June 2025.
Plastics M&A Update – June 2026
Global Plastics M&A accelerated in June, with 46 transactions announced, an increase of 10 from May and eight from June 2025.
Packaging M&A Update – May 2026
Global Packaging M&A activity slowed slightly in May, with 27 deals announced. While this reflected only a one-deal decrease compared to April, activity rebounded meaningfully from May 2025, with ten more transactions announced.
Plastics M&A Update – May 2026
Global Plastics M&A recorded 36 transactions in May, increasing by five deals from April and seven from May 2025, bringing year-to-date volume to 188 transactions.
Packaging M&A Update – April 2026
Global Packaging M&A activity remained stable in April, with 28 deals announced, one fewer than April 2025 and slightly above March levels. Through the first four months of 2026, 105 deals have been announced, a 27-deal decrease from the prior-year period.