Are the good times over? Download PitchBook’s Report here. Private equity’s calling card, from its early days in the 80s through the mid-2000s, has been its ability to beat the market. The asset class pretty handily beat stocks in bull and bear markets alike. Until 2006, LPs in PE funds had at least a 50/50 shot

GP stakes investing—a new trend, or market timing? Download PitchBook’s Report here. Last week we discussed the rising trend of GP stake sales, which are now officially in record territory in terms of volume. For now, GP stake transactions are highly concentrated in large, top-performing firms. That makes sense—buying a stake in a GP hinges on

GP stakes investing—a new trend emerging? Download PitchBook’s Report here. TPG Capital, one of the largest PE firms to retain its partnership structure, flirted with the idea of going public this year. Many of its peers are already publicly traded—Blackstone, KKR and Apollo, to name a few. But since going public, their shares haven’t performed very

Tariff questions, private equity edition Download PitchBook’s 2Q 2018 M&A Report here. Like every tariff-related conversation, it’s too early to tell what impacts they’ll have on private equity. But like many PE-related conversations, different investors see different outcomes when looking at the same thing. Carlyle’s David Rubenstein, in an interview with CNBC, says that while the

Strategics are the real barbarians “Barbarians at the gate” is an idiom that has lived past its shelf life. Classifying PE firms as barbarians implies they can raid and conquer at will. There was a tinge of truth to that in the 80s, but it’s a laughable argument in today’s market. As any investor will

Another record year in the making? Download PitchBook’s 2Q 2018 US PE Middle Market report here. There are many themes worth discussing in the middle market, but one trend we can’t ignore is its consistent strength over the years. On cue, 2018 is on pace for yet another record year for both counts and value,

First-time MM fundraising hums along Download PitchBook’s 2Q 2018 US PE Middle Market report here. We discussed last week the faltering fundraising market in the overall private equity market. But like most PE-related discussions, there’s usually a discrepancy between the PE middle market and the PE market as a whole. That’s especially true when looking

Is the fundraising boom over? Download PitchBook’s 2Q 2018 US PE Breakdown report here. It isn’t news that US private equity fundraising has been on a tear in recent years. The flood began in 2013, which saw $195 billion raised across 290 vehicles. At the time, both figures were head-and-shoulders above 2012 totals, but it

Heading west: PE sourcing more from the valley than public market Download PitchBook’s 2Q 2018 US PE Breakdown report here. We’ve remarked in the past that PE firms are warming to VC-backed targets. Younger tech companies are increasingly becoming viable buyout targets, or at least intriguing add-on candidates for their platforms. Meanwhile, we’ve also seen

New tax law to impact PE data Download PitchBook’s Report click here. Recent changes to the US corporate tax rate are a mixed bag for private equity. Reducing the top-line rate from 35% to 21% affects PE at both the fund and portfolio company levels, as both are structured as corporate entities in the first