Viking Mergers & Acquisitions

09/02/2026

Tax policy can affect a business sale, but it should not be the only factor driving the decision.
Owners should also consider value, net proceeds, buyer demand, business readiness, and personal goals before deciding when to go to market.

09/01/2026

Tax policy can affect the outcome of a business sale, but it should not drive the entire decision.

In Part 1 of our Timing the Sale series, we look at how business owners can think about tax policy alongside valuation, buyer demand, business readiness, deal structure, and personal goals.

Read the full article: https://buff.ly/rMu3gv2

Tax policy can affect the timing, structure, and net proceeds of a business sale. Learn what owners should consider before selling a business.

08/21/2026

Why did Viking choose St. Louis for our first Midwest office?

Start with the businesses.

St. Louis has long been one of the Midwest’s important business centers, with a diverse economy and a deep base of privately held and family-owned companies.

Manufacturing and industrial services remain a major part of the region’s economy. Healthcare and life sciences benefit from nationally recognized institutions and a strong research ecosystem. Professional services, food, agriculture, and AgTech add even more depth to the lower middle market.

Then, the location.

Near the geographic center of the country, St. Louis sits at the intersection of major interstate, rail, river, and air transportation networks. That connectivity has helped establish the region as a major logistics and distribution hub while giving businesses access to markets across the country.

Most importantly, there are the people behind those businesses. Owners who have spent years, and often decades, building companies that contribute to the strength of the St. Louis economy.

That’s the community Managing Partner Michael Elliott and our new St. Louis office are here to serve.

As Viking establishes its first presence in the Midwest, we’re looking forward to putting down roots and building lasting relationships with business owners, advisors, and leaders throughout the St. Louis area.

08/18/2026

AI has plenty of useful applications when you're preparing to sell a business.

It can explain unfamiliar M&A terminology, outline what buyers may request during due diligence, help you understand common deal structures, and organize questions for your advisors.

Where should business owners be more cautious?

When an AI answer starts becoming the basis for a decision.

Valuation, offer terms, buyer credibility, earnouts, tax consequences, and deal structure all depend on company-specific information, current market context, and experienced judgment.

There's also the question of confidentiality. Business owners should be thoughtful about entering sensitive financial, customer, employee, proprietary, or transaction information into consumer AI platforms.

Our latest article explores where AI can help during the sale process, where its limitations matter, and a real experiment in which an AI tool was challenged to defend the valuation multiples it had confidently provided.

Use AI to prepare. Use experienced advisors to decide.

Read the full article:

Learn how to use AI when selling a business, where it can help, and why owners should not rely on AI for final valuation, deal structure, buyer risk, or M&A advice.

08/14/2026

A business valuation calculator can provide a useful starting point for understanding what your company may be worth.

But valuation is more than an earnings figure multiplied by an industry average. The characteristics of the individual business help determine where it falls within the market.

Are the earnings normalized and repeatable? How concentrated is the customer base? How dependent is the business on its owner? Is there an experienced management team? What does the revenue mix look like?

That context helps refine an initial estimate and provides a clearer picture of what is driving, or potentially limiting, business value.

This blog post explains how online valuation calculators work, what buyers consider beyond the initial calculation, and when it makes sense to seek a more refined valuation. Read it here:

Online business valuation calculators give you a number fast. Here's what that number means.

08/12/2026

Business owners don't usually sell because their companies stop performing.

They sell because they're ready for something different.

The challenge is making sure that decision reflects thoughtful planning, not exhaustion.

Burnout is a legitimate reason to begin evaluating your options. But understanding your business's value, how buyers are likely to view it, and what you want your next chapter to look like can help ensure you're making decisions from a position of clarity rather than urgency.

In this article, we share one of the biggest advantages of planning early: Information creates options.

Read the full article: https://buff.ly/sdemT3p

Thinking about selling your business because you're burned out? Learn how burnout affects exit planning, business valuation, and long-term decision-making before you sell.

08/11/2026

Viking M&A’s growth has reached a significant new milestone:

With the opening of our newest office in St. Louis, Missouri, we now have 20 locations and a presence in the Midwest for the first time.

From our roots in the Southeast, Viking has steadily expanded across the Mid-Atlantic and Texas. Now, Managing Partner Michael Elliott will lead our next chapter of growth, bringing Viking’s locally based approach and broader M&A resources to business owners throughout the St. Louis area.

Congratulations to Michael and everyone who helped make this expansion possible. We’re proud of how far Viking has come and excited about where we’re headed next!

Learn more: https://buff.ly/aULRzBp

08/11/2026

You've probably seen the headlines.

Millions of Baby Boomer-owned businesses are expected to change hands over the next decade. Depending on who's writing, it's called the Silver Tsunami, the Great Wealth Transfer, or the Great Ownership Transfer.

You may wonder what that means for business owners.

Will there be too many businesses for sale? Will buyers become more selective? Should you sell sooner rather than later?

While demographics may shape the market, buyers still evaluate businesses one company at a time. They continue looking for businesses with strong financial performance, experienced leadership, transferable operations, and opportunities for future growth.

So, the biggest takeaway isn't alarm. It's preparation.

Understanding how buyers are likely to evaluate your business today can give you more options whenever you're ready to transition.

Read the full article by Mike Donahue:

Business succession is accelerating, but what does it mean for owners? Learn how the Great Ownership Transfer may affect business valuations, buyer demand, and exit planning.

08/06/2026

The phone stops ringing. The calendar goes quiet. And the dip begins.

It's not grief, exactly. Not regret. It's something harder to name. The loss of being needed, of having a place to be, of building toward something.

For owners who spent 20 or 30 years as the person everyone depended on, that silence can feel disorienting in ways that don't match the celebration happening around them.

Selling your business solves the financial question. It doesn't solve the identity question. Here's what the post-sale dip looks like (and why it's normal).

https://buff.ly/Ju08qob

07/30/2026

When buyers evaluate a business, they're not only looking at what the company has accomplished. They're also considering what it could become under new ownership.

That doesn't mean sellers need aggressive forecasts or ambitious projections. The most compelling growth opportunities are credible and grounded in the business itself.

Could the company expand geographically? Add complementary services? Sell more to existing customers? Strengthen its sales process? Improve margins through operational changes?

Business owners don't necessarily need to pursue every available opportunity before selling. A strong company with a clear path for continued growth can be attractive precisely because the next owner still has opportunities to build on what the founder created.

When preparing a business for market, tell both sides of the story: what you've built and where the business could go next.