Is Private Equity Back?
Early posting this morning, as I have a 10:10am spot on CNBC (they don’t quite believe in my laundry room setup, which means I actually need to leave the house). Our scheduled topic: “Is private equity back?” The answer, of course, rests largely on how you define “back.” Or, for that matter, how you define “away.” So here are four different definitions, with corresponding answers. Really hoping I settle on one within the next hour or so, because multiple choice makes for bad television (save for game-shows). Back , 1: The public is beginning to take positive notice of private equity again, due to a building trickle of IPOs and Blackstone’s rising stock price (a bogus, but pervasive, barometer). Narcissistic evidence for this can be seen in the Dan Primack CNBC Appearance Index, which spiked in 2007 and has been largely inactive until August 10, 2009. Many experts note that the DPCNBCA is predictive of PE market visibility, but utterly irrelevant in terms of PE market performance or health. Back , 2: Private equity deal volume has significantly increased, particularly as a percentage of the overall M&A market. This is one of those things that is difficult to perceive, but which we’re told is real. Like string theory or
