We reviewed our private equity database for 2021 platform acquisitions to determine the most active investment banking firms closing deals with private equity acquirers. Here are the top 10 I-banks, ranked by number of deals closed as PE platform acquisitions.
The trending private equity investment sectors for February 2022 wereWealth Management, Information Technology Services, Consulting, and Cloud-Based Software.
Sample transactions for each category are highlighted below.
Traditionally, Construction has not been a preferred industry of interest for private equity firms, precisely because it is often capital intensive and cyclical.
However, the Private Equity Info Research Database currently tracks 393 unique portfolio companies in the Construction space, collectively owned by 321 unique private equity firms. Clearly, there is now PE appetite in the construction space.
Top PE Firms Investing in the Construction Industry
The following PE firms hold at least 3 current platform investments in construction companies.
The Private Equity Info Research Database currently tracks 521 unique portfolio companies in the Apparel space, collectively owned by 386 unique private equity firms.
The graph below shows the PE platform investment trend in Apparel companies over the past 6 years.
The Private Equity Info Research Database shows 267 PE-backed portfolio companies in the Staffing space. These companies are collectively held by 195 private equity firms.
The Staffing market includes recruitment, workforce solutions, talent management, staffing services, staffing software, and more.
Private Equity has shown a substantial increased interest in Activewear companies in recent years, driven by greater health awareness and further fueled by Covid.
TruSight published the results of their investor survey, polling investors about deal flow sentiment, deal origination, workflow tools, and travel plans for 2022.
Portfolio company aging stats are dictated by past acquisition activity and exit rates over time.
As portfolio companies grow older in their respective funds, they age out, via an exit, often within 3 – 7 years. Portfolio companies in the 5 – 7 year vintage signal potential near-term transactions – deal flow – the lifeblood of investment banks, private equity firms, accountants, law firms, and a host of M&A service providers.
For U.S. portfolio companies owned by U.S.-based private equity firms, there are currently:
1,225 portfolio companies currently aged (5 – 5.9 years)
997 portfolio companies currently aged (6 – 6.9 years)
776 portfolio companies currently aged (7 – 7.9 years)
If we stand on the 5-year mark and look upstream at the parade of portfolio companies approaching their five-year anniversary in their respective funds, we’ll see the monthly aging flow shown in the graph below.