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Logistics, trucking and warehousing M&A advisory

Sell your trucking, logistics or warehouse business

I help owners of carriers, freight brokerages, warehouses, delivery fleets and moving companies plan and run their exit. I started in corporate finance and operations at manufacturers. Then I bought, grew and sold a senior care business with nearly 1,000 employees.

Large workforce nearly 1,000 employees at the business I built and sold
Operations finance budgets and forecasting at manufacturers, Fortune 500 to small
Iconic network national buyer reach and a 5.2 month median time to close

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Logistics and trucking M&A in 2026

Costs hit a record. Buyers are getting ready to move.

Small carriers have been squeezed by a long freight downturn. Deal counts held steady through it, and advisors expect activity to climb into 2027.

Running a truck cost a record $2.336 per mile in 2025

ATRI found costs up 3.4% while truckload and refrigerated carriers averaged operating margins under 1%. Flatbed carriers averaged a small loss. Truck counts fell 2.4%, the largest capacity cut since the downturn began.

Source: DC Velocity, ATRI operational costs of trucking, Jul 2026

Small trucking companies sold for about 3x earnings

Trucking businesses sold through BizBuySell from 2021 to 2025 averaged 3.00x SDE, at a median price near $1.14 million. The 2025 average rose to 3.11x. Storage and warehouse businesses averaged 3.41x.

Source: BizBuySell, trucking company valuation benchmarks (sold 2021 to 2025)

Deal volume held flat and advisors expect a surge

Tenney Group counted 566 transportation and logistics deals in the first half of 2026, level with a year earlier. It expects record activity in 2027. More than 550 smaller carrier deals closed in 2025.

Sources: FreightWaves, Tenney Group mid year report, Jul 2026, The Trucker, M&A cycle seeks normalization during 2026, Mar 2026

Asset light and specialized models earn the premium

Raymond James data put asset light 3PLs near 15.2x EBITDA and asset heavy truckload carriers near 7.7x among large companies. Buyers favor dedicated, healthcare, cross border and specialized freight. Pure spot brokers are expected to lag.

Sources: Ecommerce Fulfillment Newsletter, 3PL M&A Monthly #01 (citing Raymond James), May 2026, FreightWaves, Tenney Group expects dramatic increase in transportation M&A, Jan 2026

What buyers are looking for

What a logistics buyer checks first.

A family buyer using SBA money and a national carrier open with overlapping questions. I prepare these files before a fleet or warehouse is marketed.

Revenue by customer and lane

Your top ten customers, their share of revenue, and the lanes they ship. Buyers want to know whether one shipper can sink the business.

Contract versus spot

How much freight runs under contract or dedicated agreements and how much is bought on the spot market. Contract freight is valued more highly.

Net revenue and margin per load

For brokers and 3PLs, gross billings mean little. Buyers look at net revenue after carrier cost, margin per load and load counts by month.

Safety and compliance file

CSA scores, inspection and crash history, DOT audit results, drug testing records and insurance loss runs. A bad record raises premiums for the next owner.

Fleet list and maintenance

Every tractor, trailer, van and forklift with year, mileage, title or lease status and repair history. Deferred maintenance comes straight off the price.

Drivers and hourly staff

Headcount, turnover, pay structure, owner operator versus employee status and who dispatches. Buyers want a crew that stays after closing.

Price drivers for carriers and warehouses

What pushes your price down	What pushes your price up
Mostly spot freight that reprices every week	Contract, dedicated or warehousing agreements that renew
One shipper is a third of revenue	No customer above roughly 15% of revenue
The owner dispatches, quotes and answers every customer call	A dispatcher, operations manager and sales lead who run the day
Aging trucks with deferred repairs and no records	A well kept fleet with a maintenance log and planned replacements
Poor CSA scores and rising insurance premiums	A clean safety record and stable loss runs
High driver and warehouse turnover	A tenured crew with clear pay, schedules and training

Who is buying

Carriers, 3PLs, roll ups and private equity are all buying.

Larger carriers and 3PLs buy for density, capacity and new services. Private equity backed platforms buy smaller brokers and delivery fleets as add ons. Individuals with SBA loans buy many owner operated businesses.

Buyer type	What they pay for	Active examples
Larger carriersStrategic	Trucks, drivers, terminals and customers that add density or a specialty like flatbed or dedicated. Werner paid about $283 million for FirstFleet.	Werner Enterprises, PGT Trucking, Trimac Transportation, AmeriLux Transportation
3PLs and brokerage networksStrategic	Customer books, agent offices, warehousing capacity and new modes they can sell across their network.	Echo Global Logistics, Trinity Logistics, Wagner Logistics, ATS Logistics
Private equity backed platformsFinancial	Brokers and final mile operators they can plug into their technology and back office as add ons.	FitzMark (Calera Capital), ADL Final Mile (Red Dog Equity), Fura
Moving and relocation groupsStrategic	Local movers with a strong market name, storage space and a team that stays on.	The Armstrong Company

Recent logistics acquisitions.

Carrier, broker and warehouse deals announced in 2025 and 2026. Most small fleet sales are private, so use this to see who is buying.

Date	Buyer	Target	Type	Value
Sep 2026	FitzMark (backed by Calera Capital)	United Transportation Services28 year old freight brokerage with trade show logistics; FitzMark's 11th acquisition	PE backed add on	Undisclosed
Jul 2026	AmeriLux Transportation & Logistics	Dedicated SystemsGreen Bay, Wisconsin; about 68 power units; flatbed and oversized freight; more than doubled the buyer's fleet	Strategic	Undisclosed
Apr 2026	The Armstrong Company	Accent Moving, Storage & LogisticsTulsa, Oklahoma; owner stays on as president of the combined company	Strategic	Undisclosed
Mar 2026	Fura	Barton LogisticsBandera, Texas; brokerage founded in 1997; Fura's fifth broker acquisition	Roll up	Undisclosed

Show all 12 deals

Date	Buyer	Target	Type	Value
Jan 2026	Werner Enterprises	FirstFleet (First Enterprises)Murfreesboro, Tennessee; about 2,400 tractors and $615M+ revenue in dedicated trucking	Strategic	About $283M including $37.8M of real estate
Jan 2026	Echo Global Logistics	ITS LogisticsReno, Nevada; 3PL with about 4 million sq ft of warehousing and $1.3B+ revenue	Strategic (PE owned)	Undisclosed
Jan 2026	ADL Final Mile (backed by Red Dog Equity)	Xcel Delivery ServicesArizona and the Southwest; final mile and on demand delivery	PE backed add on	Undisclosed
Jan 2026	Trinity Logistics	Granite LogisticsSartell and Minneapolis, Minnesota; flatbed and heavy haul freight agent with about 135 people	Strategic	Undisclosed
Dec 2025	Wagner Logistics	Dawson Logistics contract logistics businessFour warehouses in Illinois, Ohio and Tennessee; one million sq ft; about 90 employees	Strategic carve out	Undisclosed
Dec 2025	PGT Trucking	Debrick Truck LinePaola, Kansas; flatbed, dry van and power only carrier with about 30 power units	Strategic	Undisclosed
Oct 2025	ATS Logistics (Anderson Trucking Service)	Trailer Bridge Logistics brokerage divisionJacksonville, Florida; four offices; brokerage and intermodal	Strategic carve out	Undisclosed
Aug 2025	Trimac Transportation	Searcy TruckingWinnipeg, Manitoba; 120+ trucks, flatbed and heavy haul, plus warehousing; 56 years in business	Strategic	Undisclosed

Industry valuation estimator

What is your logistics or trucking business worth?

Owner run carriers, brokers, movers and warehouses trade on SDE. Companies with dispatch, operations and sales managers in place trade on adjusted EBITDA.

Annual owner earnings: SDE, or adjusted EBITDA if you have a paid manager ($) How much of your revenue is under contract, dedicated or warehousing agreementsYour largest customer's share of revenueYour role in the day to dayYour fleet and safety record

Estimated value range

Enter your earnings

Illustrative only, not a valuation.

Get a real valuation from Max

Published ranges for this industry

Trucking companies sold from 2021 to 2025: median 2.96x SDE, middle half 2.29x to 3.56x, 2025 average 3.11x (BizBuySell)
Storage and warehouse businesses averaged 3.41x SDE; moving and shipping 2.52x; routes 1.78x (BizBuySell, 2021 to 2025)
Lower middle market fleets: 5x to 8x EBITDA (Jackim Woods, as cited by Iconic)
Freight brokerages: 3.0x to 4.5x EBITDA under $1M, 4.0x to 6.0x at $1M to $5M, 5.0x to 7.5x above $5M (CT Acquisitions)

Bands start from the logistics multiples above. Contract freight, concentration, your role and safety record move them by amounts I chose. Use the result as a first look.

Where fleet sales lose money

Mistakes that cost logistics owners money.

A year or two is enough to fix most of these. Skip that, and diligence will surface each one.

Selling at the bottom of the freight cycle

Earnings in a downturn set the multiple's base. Selling after rates recover, or showing a credible recovery, can change the number a lot.

Cost: A price based on your worst year

Letting one shipper grow too big

Buyers discount heavily when one customer carries a large share of revenue. CT Acquisitions notes 30% or more can kill a deal.

Cost: A lower multiple, an earn out or no deal

Pricing on the value of the trucks

Equipment sets a floor, but buyers pay for earnings. A fleet that earns little sells near its auction value.

Cost: Months on the market with no offers

Ignoring the safety file

CSA scores, crashes and loss runs drive insurance cost for the next owner. Buyers price that cost into their offer.

Cost: A price cut or a buyer who walks

Being the only dispatcher

If shippers call you and drivers take orders only from you, the buyer is buying a job. That shrinks the buyer pool.

Cost: A lower multiple and a long transition

Mixing personal and business spending

Unclear add backs and cash expenses make lenders doubt your earnings. SBA buyers need books that tie to the tax returns.

Cost: Lost financing and a lower price

FAQ

Questions logistics owners ask me.

Who is buying trucking and logistics businesses right now?

Larger carriers like Werner, PGT and Trimac are buying fleets that add density or a specialty. 3PLs like Echo, Trinity and Wagner are buying brokers and warehouses. Private equity backed platforms like FitzMark and ADL Final Mile are adding smaller companies.

What multiple will my trucking company sell for?

BizBuySell shows small trucking firms at a 2.96x SDE median for 2021 to 2025, averaging 3.11x in 2025. Jackim Woods puts larger fleets at roughly 5x to 8x EBITDA.

How are freight brokerages valued?

Brokerages are priced on earnings, not gross billings. CT Acquisitions publishes 3.0x to 4.5x EBITDA under $1 million and 4.0x to 6.0x from $1 million to $5 million. Contract freight and a spread out customer base push you higher.

Is now a good time to sell?

Costs hit a record in 2025 and margins were thin, so many owners are waiting. Tenney Group expects record deal activity in 2027. Getting ready now lets you sell into that demand.

Will an SBA loan work for a buyer of my fleet or brokerage?

Yes. Plenty of smaller carriers and brokers sell to SBA borrowers. The buyer must put in 10% equity, and a seller note on full standby can supply up to half.

Do asset light businesses sell for more than asset heavy ones?

Generally yes. Raymond James data put large asset light 3PLs near 15.2x EBITDA versus about 7.7x for asset heavy truckload carriers. Small businesses trade far below those levels, but the direction holds.

What kinds of logistics businesses are in demand?

Tenney Group points to dedicated transportation, healthcare logistics, reverse logistics and cross border firms. Specialized brokerages with managed transportation also draw interest. Pure spot truckload brokers are expected to lag.

How long does it take to sell?

BizBuySell trucking listings took a median 203 days to sell. Iconic publishes a 5.2 month median time to close. Clean files up front usually shorten the process.

Terms buyers will use

SDE: Profit plus owner pay, perks and one time costs. The usual yardstick for carriers, brokers and warehouses earning under a few million.
Adjusted EBITDA: Operating profit before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization, restated as if a hired operations manager ran the company.
Asset light: A model like brokerage or managed transportation that moves freight without owning most of the trucks.
Asset based carrier: A trucking company that owns or leases its own tractors and trailers and employs or contracts its drivers.
3PL: Third party logistics provider. A company that handles transportation, warehousing or fulfillment for shippers.
Net revenue: For a broker or 3PL, what remains after paying the carrier. Also called gross margin or spread.
Spot freight: Loads priced one at a time at current market rates, with no ongoing contract.
Dedicated contract carriage: Trucks and drivers assigned to one shipper under a multi year agreement.
Final mile: Delivery from a local hub to the end customer's home or business, often for big and bulky goods.
CSA score: The federal Compliance, Safety, Accountability rating that tracks a carrier's inspections, violations and crashes.
Loss runs: An insurer's report of claims history. Buyers and their insurers use it to price coverage.
TMS and WMS: Transportation and warehouse management systems that track loads, inventory and billing.
Owner operator: A driver who owns or leases a truck and contracts with a carrier rather than working as an employee.
Earn out: Deferred price paid only if revenue or profit goals are met after the sale.

Let's talk

Own a logistics, trucking or warehousing business? Schedule a complimentary call with Max!

Twenty private minutes on your customers, contracts and safety file, read the way a logistics buyer reads them, plus what to fix first.

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Sources (23)

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