Industry up 9 percent in September, per Blair/PCO M&A Specialists index

Editor’s Note: This article was clarified on Nov. 6 to show the pest index increased, not decreased, in September.

The William Blair/PCO M&A Specialists Pest Index is a proprietary compilation of the monthly sales for 158 different U.S. pest control companies across 36 states. For September, the index increase 9 percent year-over-year in September, which is showing continued deceleration from August (up 11 percent) and July (up 12 percent). The September results are slightly below the historical average index growth rate of 12 percent.

“September’s below-average results are in line with recent commentary from several large players,” William Blair Equity Researcher Tim Mulrooney said in the news release. “Specifically, Rentokil referenced a ‘softer consumer demand environment’ in its third-quarter trading update, and Rollins said that digital leads were ‘flat or maybe even slightly down’ in the third quarter.”

Dan Gordon, CPA, who is Pest Management Professional’s financial columnist as well as a partner in PCO Bookkeepers & M&A Specialists, added,  “Our clients are expressing the same sentiments regarding the price of digital media as well. However, many are finding alternatives such as door-to-door sales and smaller reasonably priced acquisitions in order to grow.”

The September results by segment include:

• The Residential Pest Index increased 13 percent year-over-year.
• The Commercial Pest Index increased 10 percent year-over-year.
• The Termite Index decreased 1 percent year-over-year.
• The Bed Bug Index increased 17 percent year-over-year.
• The Mosquito Index decreased 11 percent year-over-year.

View the full report and the archive of past reports at SellMyPCOBusiness.com.

 About the William Blair/PCO M&A Specialists Pest Index

The William Blair/PCO M&A Specialists Pest Index tracks the monthly performance of 158 privately held pest control companies across 36 states with combined annual 2022 revenue of $538 million. The purpose of the report is to track the monthly performance of several different U.S. pest markets, including residential, commercial and termite. It does not include residential door-to-door companies.