M&A mayhem

Listen, we’re too classy to say we told you so—but when we warned you that 2025 would be a big year for mergers and acquisitions, we kind of nailed it.

We’re seven days into the new year and we’re already knee-deep in deals. Companies across the market are looking forward to a second Trump presidency promising more regulatory leniency, and they’re taking full advantage ASAP.

We already talked about the FuboTV/Disney deal yesterday, and you’ve almost certainly heard about the steel deal that Biden shot down just the other day. But here are a few other M&A moves you might have missed over the last 48 hours.

💵 It’s payday: HR manager Paychex will acquire paycheck processor Paycor HCM for $4.1 billion in the latest deal for the payroll and HR industry, which has been consolidating rapidly. “It will enhance our capabilities upmarket, broaden our suite of AI-driven HR technology capabilities, and provide new channels for sustained long-term growth,” Paychex CEO John Gibson said. Paycor actually fell 3.02% today, while Paychex rose 2.35%.

👔 Cintas has gone public with its $5.3 billion offer to acquire smaller uniform maker rival UniFirst. The twist: Cintas has been making overtures at an acquisition since November, but UniFirst’s board refused to meet and even discuss the offer—so Cintas publicly announced the proposal in order to spur UniFirst shareholder support. UniFirst popped 19.98%, while Cintas rose 1.96%.

📷 Smile for the camera: Getty Images and Shutterstock will join forces in a merger of equals that will create a $3.7 billion combined company that operates under the Getty brand. It’s a smart move—both photo marketplace companies have struggled to compete as AI-generated images proliferate the internet. Shares of Getty soared 24.37% higher, while Shutterstock climbed 14.89%.

🏥 Inari Medical continued to rise two days after it received an acquisition offer from Stryker. It’s an all-cash, $4.9 billion deal that will see the two medical device makers join forces under the Stryker brand. Stryker wants to utilize Inari’s focus on devices to treat peripheral vascular diseases to dive deeper into the growing medical thrombectomy market. Inari popped 22.23%, while Stryker sank 1.64%.