The decrease in deal volume is the result of a shift in our company-wide strategy.

Specifically, we have narrowed our M&A scope to focus strictly on core business areas, while selectively passing on non-core opportunities where the impact on overall performance would be limited.

Behind this decision is our desire, given current market conditions, to sustain our M&A activities using free cash flow and debt financing without over-relying on equity issuance. Consequently, we are taking a highly selective approach to target transactions. As a result of this selectivity – and our commitment to avoiding rushed deals – the number of executed transactions has decreased; however, we continue to build up a robust pipeline focused primarily on our core domains.