West & North Texas · Texas
Midland business brokers and M&A advisors
MDR & Associates helps Midland owners sell a company for full value, acting as M&A advisor for the seller only. Midland sits on Interstate 20 in the Permian Basin. Our advisors come to you in Midland, at your company or anywhere that keeps the conversation private.
The Permian Basin's administrative center
Midland was founded in 1881 as the midway point on the Texas and Pacific Railway between Fort Worth and El Paso. The 1923 discovery of oil in the Permian Basin made it the administrative center of the West Texas oil fields, and during World War II it had the nation's largest bombardier training base. The Spraberry Trend, found after the war, is still the country's third-largest oil field by total reserves.
The 2020 census counted 132,524 residents, with 169,983 in the metropolitan area. The basin produces about one fifth of the nation's petroleum and natural gas output. Among the largest employers are Midland ISD with 2,919 people, Midland Memorial Hospital with 1,670, Dawson Geophysical with 1,244, Baker Hughes with 600 and Warren Equipment Companies with 597. The city is the seat of Midland County and reaches into Martin County.
Midland at a glance
- CountyMidland County (part in Martin County)
- Metro areaMidland metropolitan area (Midland–Odessa)
- Companies we sell$3M–$100M
- Typical transaction3–9 months
- Fee if we do not closeNone
Pricing a company through oil's booms and busts
Midland has ridden several cycles, from the 1970s boom on high oil prices to a 2014 unemployment rate of 2.3 percent, the lowest in the country. Buyers know that history, and it shapes how they price companies that serve the oil patch. They look past one great year to the whole cycle, asking how revenue and margins behaved when activity fell and how much of the work depends on a few operators.
Our job is to show your company's real earning power. We recast several years of financials, separate one-time gains and costs, and explain how you held up in downturns. A formal business valuation is available if you want an independent figure, and our distribution page covers equipment and supply companies.
Keeping buyers competing
Competition sets the price, so we work to have more than one serious buyer at the table. Our first approach goes to buyers in our own records, individuals, capital groups and private equity funds alike; blind ads on the national marketplaces come only if needed. Each buyer is bound by a confidentiality agreement and has shown the means to pay before learning your name. A principal of the firm negotiates, and the fee is paid only on a completed sale. Nearby basin towns, Odessa among them, are grouped on our West & North Texas region page.
What we sell in and around Midland
Industry decides the buyer, the multiple and the diligence. These are the four sectors we work in most.
Manufacturing
Equipment, real estate, backlog and customer concentration decide what a manufacturer is worth.
How buyers value itHome Services
Plumbing, HVAC, roofing, landscaping and other home service companies — where repeat customers, crews and technicians decide the price.
How buyers value itDistribution & Wholesale
Inventory, working capital and supplier agreements decide what a distributor is worth.
How buyers value itBusiness Services
Recurring revenue and owner dependence separate a two-times business from a six-times business.
How buyers value itStraight answers
Questions Midland owners ask before they sell
Answered in full by the advisors who run the sales. Every Texas-wide answer.
The process
How a Midland sale runs
Ten steps in four stages, typically three to nine months. Click any step to see it in full.
- Prepare
- Go to market
- Negotiate
- Close
We also work with owners near Midland
Questions owners in Midland ask
Should I sell my Midland company at the top of an oil cycle?
Selling when earnings are strong usually helps, but buyers will average across the cycle regardless. The better question is whether your recent results are sustainable and documented. We review your numbers in a free discovery meeting and tell you whether now or a later window is likely to bring more.
Will buyers discount my company because a few operators are my biggest customers?
Concentration is common in the Permian Basin and buyers expect it, but they price it. Long relationships, master service agreements and work spread across several operators all shrink the discount. We present that evidence clearly so buyers negotiate over price rather than over risk they cannot see.
Talk to an advisor about your Midland company
Four fields, a reply the same business day, and nothing shared with anyone. If you would rather talk, call (855) 637-2776.