The cumulative deal value rose 7.9% in January to $143.9B, though this figure was less than the $156.9B spent on M&A deal ...

Companies announced 4,110 merger deals in the first quarter, down 4% from the 4,299 in the year-ago quarter and 12% below the previous quarter’s total of 4,665, according to S&P (see chart below).

M&A activity provides a lucrative line of business ... of Calpine Corp. by Constellation Energy Corp. (CEG) (see chart). This handful of larger deals helped push the first-quarter dollar total ...