The number of mergers and acquisitions in the tech sector is declining--but the value of the deals is climbing.
The number of tech sector deals decreased from 65 deals in the first quarter to 55 in the second quarter, a 15% drop according to the M&A Insights report released by accounting firm PricewaterhouseCoopers on Monday.
However, the cumulative value of tech M&A activity jumped to $31.8 billion. That's an 8% increase from the previous quarter and a 35% increase from the same quarter last year.
In the second quarter of 2011, the average tech sector deal was worth $315 million. This past quarter, the average was $578 million per deal. PricewaterhouseCoopers predicts the average deal value will decline throughout the rest of 2012, however.
Interestingly, the decline in M&A activity also comes amid a decline in IPO volume--both in the tech sector and more broadly. If the decline continues, PwC notes, it could bump up deal activity "as former IPO candidates instead consider the M&A route."
The technology industry constituted 20% of all U.S. M&A deals in the second quarter, according to the report.
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