TheLeadLeft

Markit Recap – 1/16/2017

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Speeches by UK prime ministers were rarely market moving events, despite what some of the more breathless commentators in the broadcast media would have you think. But perhaps this has changed since the Brexit referendum in June last year, even if the spin doctors manage the message in advance.

The main thrust of Theresa May’s speech this week was leaked in the days leading up to her address, so traders and investors were not exactly hanging on her every word. But there were still some pronouncements that did affect sentiment, particularly in the FX markets, such as the confirmation that the final deal will be put to parliament...

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Leveraged Loan Insight & Analysis -1/16/2017

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Non-sponsored MM new money picked up in 2016; refinancings dropped

Non-sponsored lending dropped to US$86bn in 2016 from US$93bn in 2015. In contrast with every other major market segment (overall, leveraged, investment-grade, institutional, middle market sponsored) which witnessed a quarter over quarter increase in volume in 4Q16, non-sponsored middle market lending of US$22bn, was down 7%. Refinancings, the main driver of volume since the credit crisis, were down 21% in 2016 to US$53bn. Most of the refinancings were done in previous years and there was not that much in the form of opportunistic refinancings as pricing has somewhat stabilized in this market...

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A Year in Review (Third of a Series)

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“How’s your pipeline?” we asked the head of one of the leading middle market arrangers in December. He shook his head. “The quality-adjusted deal flow is down.” That distinction resonated with a number of our middle market brethren. Complaints centered around ebitda adjustments, over-liberal debt allowance baskets, and covenant-lite (or covenant-wide) structures. “High leverage per…

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Lead Left Interview - David Petrucco, Ed Cerny, and Mark Gudis (Part 2)

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This week we continue our conversation with David Petrucco, Ed Cerny, and Mark Gudis – founding partners of Backcast Partners Management. Backcast is a recently formed venture that focuses on providing direct debt and equity capital to middle market companies across industries. Second of two parts – View part one  The Lead Left: So Mark, you’re in…

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The Pulse of Private Equity - 1/16/2017

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Has US add-on activity peaked?

Last year, US private equity investors added on to extant holdings so frequently that the proportion of add-ons to all buyouts hit no less than 64%. The steady increase over the past six years, and especially the rapid surge of 3% even as overall activity fell, both speak to the increasing maturation of adding on as a PE investment strategy and its relative attraction in the current environment...

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