M&A

Upswing

Merger and acquisition (M&A) activity was down in 2023, but McKinsey says we should keep our chins up based on the strong final months of the year and economic optimism among professionals.

Here’s the shot: Global M&A activity last year totaled $3.1 trillion, dropping 16% from 2022, McKinsey found in a new report by senior partners Jake Henry and Mieke Van Oostende. And the chaser: The value of M&A activity in the fourth quarter increased 41% over Q3 and 37% year over year.

The report’s authors noted other signs of optimism, including positive macroeconomic factors such as tempered inflation, healthy job growth, and solid consumer spending.

“This improving picture has buoyed economists’ hopes of a soft landing for the US economy—a sentiment shared by many investors who boosted stock market returns at the end of the year,” the authors wrote. In addition, of the nearly 1,000 respondents to McKinsey's survey, 46% expected their home economies would improve over the next six months, while just 26% expected them to worsen.

For more on M&A predictions, click here.—AZ

PRESENTED BY SAGE

Grease the gears

Would you like to slash closing times in half while boosting your finance team's productivity by 40% or more? No, this isn’t a CFO fever dream—it’s a stone-cold reality. But how to do it?

Say hi to Sage, the best-in-class cloud accounting and financial management solution that’s ready to take your biz up several notches. Ranked the No. 1 accounting software by G2, Sage can automate tedious tasks and increase efficiency up to 90%. Huuuge numbers.

Don’t wanna let time-consuming manual processes hold you back. Sage’s AI-powered continuous accounting and ERP can help you stay focused on scaling so you can climb the ranks.

Get efficient.

COMPLIANCE

Under the radar

Elon Musk and Taylor Swift aren’t the only ones with extra eyes on their airplanes.

Last week, the IRS announced plans to perform audits on executives’ personal use of business aircraft. Dun dun dun.

The audits will focus on aircraft used by large corporations and high-income taxpayers, with the aim of determining who’s using business tax deductions for personal travel.

While tax deductions for corporate jets are permitted under US law, that only extends to business use, meaning it shouldn’t include every time the CEO is sipping a marg in Tulum.

“Personal use of corporate jets and other aircraft by executives and others have tax implications, and it’s a complex area where IRS work has been stretched thin,” IRS Commissioner Danny Werfel said in a statement, noting that expanded resources have now allowed further inquiry into the topic.

Click here if you’re worried about your corporate jet usage.—NP

EARNINGS

Pumped up

Bodybuilders often adhere to periods of cutting and bulking, where a “cut” signifies a cycle of eating at a calorie deficit to lose weight, and a “bulk” refers to eating in excess in order to get swole.

Planet Fitness seems to be doing both.

In its Q4 earnings announcement, the gym franchise known for its low membership fees and lunk alarms flexed its 1.7 million new members and 165 new locations in 2023. Planet Fitness also reported revenue gains of 14.4% over the prior year, to $1.1 billion, and a $36 million increase in profit from 2022, to $147 million.

But recent events show a loss of muscle mass elsewhere, including a decrease in employee headcount and turnover in the C-suite.

Continue reading here.—AZ

FROM THE CREW

Counting on AI. Let’s embrace AI and its capabilities in repetitive accounting tasks so your teams can focus on what’s important. Join CFO Brew on March 14, featuring Aaron Harris, CTO of Sage, to learn how to use AI to enhance data analysis and make strategic decisions.

MARKET FORCES

JOBS