<p style="line-height: 20.8px;">While 2015 was a good year for mergers and acquisitions, private equity missed out on the bulk of the action. There were $2.283 trillion of mergers and acquisitions in the U.S. last year, the highest level on record, according to data provider Dealogic Ltd. Buyouts, however, accounted for about 6% of that sum, down from about 8% for 2014 and about 14% for 2013, according to Dealogic.</p>