Comment / Analysis – which competitor is next in M&A line after Knight-Swift deal?

DIGITAL -- 33563 knight15 A truck pulls out at Knight Transportation at the company's Phoenix location Thursday. Knight Transportation has thrived in an industry where others have failed. AZR PHOTO BY JACK KURTZ

The merger between Knight Transportation and Swift Transportation dealt a blow to the M&A bears who have recently argued that the transport and logistics industry was ill-prepared to enjoy any upside from consolidation this year or next.

After a year of transition for acquisitions, we might now have to prepare for a deal-making binge: is a tsunami of epic proportions about to hit the trucking sector in the US?

And if so, what does this $6bn-plus merger tell us?

Landscape

M&A volumes and values ...