November’s most popular stories

Time flies. With just one month left in the year, here’s a look at our five most-read stories from November:

Bain Capital rounds up $3.1 billion to buy Service Logic. “Private equity giant Bain Capital has lined up $3.1 billion in debt financing to acquire commercial HVAC provider Service Logic from Leonard Green & Partners, Bloomberg reported… Several Wall Street firms are involved in the deal, with Blackstone expected to lead the financing.” (Full story)

Home improvement demand hit by uncertainty, housing pressure. “U.S. consumers’ appetite for spending on home improvements remains in flux, according to Home Depot, which cut its annual profit outlook on ‘weaker home improvement demand [and] tepid consumer spending,’ CNBC reported.” (Full story)

95% efficiency rule for gas furnaces stands, court rules. “A federal appeals court, in a 2-1 decision on Tuesday, Nov. 4, upheld the Department of Energy’s 95 percent efficiency rule for residential gas furnaces… [which] effectively prohibits the manufacture of non-condensing furnaces beginning in late 2028.” (Full story)

Carrier, Trane execs see path forward amid residential weakness. “Following weak residential earnings — and downbeat commentary — over the past few weeks, executives from Carrier and Trane struck an optimistic tone at a Chicago conference… anticipating that this year’s residential market choppiness will begin to subside next year.” (Full story)

HVAC shipments plunge 42% in September. “U.S. combined shipments of central air conditioners and air-source heat pumps in September fell 41.5 percent year-over-year, according to AHRI data. While the trend was expected… September marks both the fourth consecutive month when shipments declined by more than 20 percent — and the sharpest single-month year-over-year drop since at least 2010.” (Full story)