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Ahead of the Curve: 2018 U.S PE Trends

(Charlotte, NC – March 6, 2019)

Pitchbook recently published its 2018 Annual U.S PE Breakdown Report. We found the following market trends particularly interesting:

Median U.S EV / EBITDA Multiples

During much of the year, PE firms enjoyed continued easy access to affordable debt financing. However, recent months have seen a decline in the outflow of these loan funds from banks as investors reconsider current interest rates and covenant terms. Observing these recent trends, Leon Black, co-founder of Apollo, remarked that, “the credit markets, unlike the equity markets, have gone to bubble status” at a conference last December.

 

U.S PE Deals (#) by EV / EBITDA Bucket

More deals are being priced above 10x than ever before. In 2018, 61% of all U.S. PE deals were greater than 10x EBITDA, an increase from ~50% in 2015.

 

U.S PE Deal Activity

Deal activity is at an all-time high with $713 billion invested versus $365 billion exited.

 

U.S PE Deals (#) by Size

Despite a number of mega deals in the headlines, the action is still in the middle market, with 90% of deals having an enterprise value below $500 million.

Source: Pitchbook

 

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