From pre-deal screen to exit evidence in a regional LTL platform
Mid-market sponsor · regional LTL and dedicated carrier · LTM revenue $1.1B
$12.4M of EBITDA realised against a $16M value creation plan, with one weak lever stopped early and its capital redeployed.
- EBITDA
- $122M$134.4M▲ improvement
- Top-3 customer share
- 41%33%▼ improvement
- Terminal cost-to-serve
- Baseline−6%▼ improvement
- Plan realised
- —78%▲ improvement
The situation
The sponsor was screening a regional LTL and dedicated carrier at an indicated 9.5–10.5x LTM EBITDA. The investment memo assumed five operational upside levers.
The deal team needed to know which assumptions were fragile before committing full diligence budget.
Trigger:M&A, exit or integration
How it unfolded — gate by gate
- 1
Pre-Deal Flash Scan
1 dayAdjustThree of five levers depended on two legacy lane contracts renewing within 14 months.
- 2
Commercial & Operational Due Diligence
3 weeksGoBoth contracts tested; customer concentration and fleet capex quantified. Price adjusted.
- 3
Value Creation Map + 100-day Blueprint
5 weeksGoInitiatives with owners, EBITDA targets and confidence levels; pricing reset first.
- 4
Proof of Value™
6 weeksStopTerminal automation piloted at one site: payback above four years.
- 5
EBITDA Realisation & Exit Evidence
Through holdMonthly plan-versus-realised tracking with evidence a buyer's diligence team would accept.
Results
- Lane pricing reset across the network: +$5.6M EBITDA.
- Terminal cost-to-serve programme: +$3.9M.
- Procurement and subcontractor terms renegotiated: +$2.9M.
- Automation lever stopped at the pilot gate; $6M of capex redeployed to a pricing and network add-on.
What made the difference
- An Adjust at the Flash Scan saved full diligence spend on untested assumptions.
- Stopping a lever early is a result, not a failure — it protected returns.
- Exit evidence was built monthly, not assembled at the end.