both for the sellers as well as us. So that’s the preference. But I think the benefit of our current capital deployment strategy is the fact that we work very hard for several years to position the company to have such a fortress balance sheet to have multiple strategies deployed at the same time. We’re returning capital to shareholders through our dividend policy and share buybacks. We’re pursuing acquisition opportunities. And as importantly, we’re investing in ourselves. We are doubling down MMI in this period. That is for sure. So, the fact that there was no buybacks in one particular quarter is not signal any change to the overall strategy. That just happened to be the dynamics for that particular quarter. and we have optionality. So, as we pursue these external growth opportunities, hopefully, as they scale and some exciting things come together, that’s where we’d love to see the capital deployed first and foremost as well as, as I said, doubling down on ourselves in technology investments, a talent acquisition that wouldn’t be considered necessarily M&A.
Steve DeGennaro: Yes. And Blaine, really, the only thing for me to add that was very comprehensive is pointing out that between the dividend and the share repurchase program, we’ve returned over $150 million to shareholders over the last 18 months, and it is that very balance sheet that we’ve built up over the years that’s allowed us to do that while also still being able to make investments both internally and externally.
Blaine Heck : Okay. Great. Just a follow-up here for Hessam, you talked about a valuation gap on some of those deals that fell out. Can you give us any better sense of how far off you were from an agreeable price? Was this closer to 5% off or 25% off?
Hessam Nadji : It’s somewhere between, Blaine. And it really was maybe about a turn with a multiple turn of what we felt may have a fair market value versus what the sellers would have liked and or the combination of the guaranteed value and earn-out. where some folks would like to take more chips off the table, and we would like to see the opposite because we’re not really looking to be anybody’s retirement plan. And we’re targeting groups and entities that have a lot of runway and would benefit from an exciting growth path in the future that will be much, much more rewarding with Marcus & Millichap than without or with any other platform. And so, if we don’t see those characteristics in a deal, we’re not just looking to buy market coverage.
We really want to find complementary services, complementary folks that are like minded, that are similar in culture, and are aggressive about future growth. And I would say those are as important criteria for us as any financial metrics.
Blaine Heck : Okay. Great. Thanks for all the commentary.
Operator: Thank you. We have reached the end of our question-and-answer session. I would now like to turn the floor back over to CEO, Hessam Nadji, for closing remarks.
Hessam Nadji: Thank you, operator, and thank you, everybody, for joining our third quarter call. We look forward to seeing you on the road and look forward to our next earnings call. Have a great day.
Operator: Thank you. This does conclude today’s teleconference. We appreciate your participation. You may disconnect your lines at this time. Enjoy the rest of your day.
