Central Texas · Texas
Waco business brokers and M&A advisors
MDR & Associates acts as Waco business brokers and M&A advisors, working for the owner who wants the strongest price and a quiet process. Waco sits on the Brazos River and I-35, halfway between Dallas and Austin, and its economy mixes healthcare, education, manufacturing, insurance and food processing. Our advisors come to you.
Cotton, Dr Pepper and a diverse Brazos River economy
Waco's growth took off after the Waco Suspension Bridge opened in 1870 and gave travelers a safe crossing of the Brazos. Cotton was grown in the Brazos and Bosque valleys after the Civil War, and Waco became known nationwide as a top producer; the Cotton Palace, built in 1894, celebrated that trade. In 1885 Dr Pepper was invented at Morrison's Old Corner Drug Store.
Today the city has 138,486 residents and anchors a metro area of McLennan, Falls and Bosque counties with 295,782 people. Top employers include Baylor University, Ascension Providence, Waco ISD, H-E-B and Baylor Scott & White Health. Its industries run from healthcare, education and retail to poultry processing, manufacturing and insurance.
Waco at a glance
- CountyMcLennan County
- Metro areaWaco metropolitan area
- Companies we sell$3M–$100M
- Typical transaction3–9 months
- Fee if we do not closeNone
The buyers drawn to Waco manufacturers and service firms
A company in Waco can attract buyers from both directions on I-35. The pool includes people who want to own and run a company themselves, capital groups and private equity firms, and we contact them directly before any blind listing goes up. For a manufacturer or food processor, they look closely at equipment condition, capacity, safety records and customer concentration, which is where our manufacturing practice focuses its preparation.
Insurance agencies and other service businesses sell on recurring revenue and staff who stay. The firm has sold an insurance agency, Edward M. Polk Associates, and buyers of an agency look first at retention, the mix of carriers and who services the accounts.
Companies that depend on Baylor, the hospitals or the school district have one more thing to show: how contracts with those institutions are bid, renewed and priced.
From first meeting to closing
We follow a ten-step process that starts with a free discovery meeting and opinion of value and ends with legal documents, closing and funds wired, usually within three to nine months. The firm has a duty to bring you every offer in person, and the decision to accept, reject or counter is always yours. Waco owners can also read how we work around Austin and elsewhere in Central Texas.
What we sell in and around Waco
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 Waco owners ask before they sell
Answered in full by the advisors who run the sales. Every Austin answer.
The process
How a Waco 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 Waco
Questions owners in Waco ask
Is it better to sell my Waco company to a local buyer or an outside one?
The best buyer is the one who pays the most on terms you can live with, wherever they are from. We invite several screened buyers, including private equity and capital groups, and let competing letters of intent show which one that is.
How do buyers value a Waco business that serves the hospitals or the university?
They look at how long the contracts run, how they are renewed and how much of revenue they represent. Steady institutional customers can support a strong multiple, but only if the company is not dependent on one of them alone. We document each major account before marketing starts.
Talk to an advisor about your Waco company
Four fields, a reply the same business day, and nothing shared with anyone. If you would rather talk, call (855) 637-2776.